The 1966 United States Senate election in Illinois took place on November 8, 1966.[1] Incumbent Democratic United States Senator Paul Douglas, seeking a fourth term in the United States Senate, faced off against Republican Charles H. Percy, a businessman and the 1964 Republican nominee for Governor of Illinois. A competitive election ensued, featuring campaign appearances by former vice president Richard M. Nixon on behalf of Percy.[2] Ultimately, Percy ended up defeating Senator Douglas by a fairly wide margin, allowing him to win what would be the first of three terms in the Senate.
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| Turnout | 71.56% | ||||||||||||||||
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 County results Percy: 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% | |||||||||||||||||
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Background
editThe primary (held on June 14) and general election coincided with those for House and state elections.[1]
Turnout in the primaries was 27.13%, with 1,509,302 votes cast.[1][3]
Turnout during the general election was 71.56%, with a total of 3,822,724 votes cast.[1][3]
Democratic primary
editIncumbent Paul Douglas was renominated, running unopposed.
Candidates
edit- Paul Douglas, incumbent U.S. Senator
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Paul H. Douglas (incumbent) | 840,936 | 100 | |
| Write-in | Others | 3 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 840,939 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
editBusinessman Charles H. Percy won the Republican primary by a large margin.
Candidates
edit- Howard J. Doyle
- Charles H. Percy, businessman and 1964 Illinois gubernatorial nominee
- Lar Daly, perennial candidate
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Charles H. Percy | 605,815 | 90.64 | |
| Republican | Howard J. Doyle | 38,636 | 5.78 | |
| Republican | Lar "America First" Daly | 23,889 | 3.57 | |
| Write-in | Others | 23 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 668,363 | 100 | ||
Write-in candidates
edit- Maxwell Primack
- Robert Sabonjian, Mayor of Waukegan
General election
editResults
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Charles H. Percy | 2,100,449 | 54.95% | +9.75% | |
| Democratic | Paul H. Douglas (incumbent) | 1,678,147 | 43.90% | −10.73% | |
| Write-in | Robert Sabonjian | 41,965 | 1.10% | ||
| Write-in | Maxwell Primack | 1,693 | 0.04% | ||
| Write-in | Others | 470 | 0.01% | ||
| Majority | 422,302 | 11.05% | +1.61% | ||
| Turnout | 3,822,724 | 71.56 | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | ||||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f g "OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 8, 1966 JUDICIAL PRIMARY ELECTION GENERAL PRIMARY, JUNE, 14, 1966" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved June 30, 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Perlstein, Rick. Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America. New York: Scribner, 2008. Print.
- ^ a b c "OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 4, 1986" (PDF). www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved April 10, 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 8, 1966" (PDF). Clerk.house.gov. Retrieved April 5, 2015.