The 1940 United States Senate election in Minnesota took place on November 5, 1940. Incumbent U.S. Senator Henrik Shipstead defected to the Republican Party of Minnesota from the Farmer–Labor Party of Minnesota, and defeated former Governor Elmer Benson of the Farmer–Labor Party and John E. Regan of the Minnesota Democratic Party to win a fourth term.
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Democratic primaryEdit
CandidatesEdit
DeclaredEdit
- Louis Erickson
- John E. O'Rourke, Former Minnesota State Representative from the 27th district (1935-1937)
- John E. Regan, 1932 Democratic gubernatorial nominee and former Minnesota State Representative from the 8th district (1931-1933)
- Joseph Wolf
ResultsEdit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John E. Regan | 50,328 | 52.31% | |
| Democratic | Joseph Wolf | 20,759 | 21.58% | |
| Democratic | Louis Erickson | 13,966 | 14.52% | |
| Democratic | John E. O'Rourke | 11,154 | 11.59% | |
| Total votes | 96,207 | 100.00% | ||
Farmer–Labor primaryEdit
CandidatesEdit
DeclaredEdit
- Elmer A. Benson, 24th Governor of Minnesota (1937-1939) and former U.S. Senator (1935-1936)
- George H. Lommen, Minnesota State Senator from the 61st district since 1927
ResultsEdit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farmer–Labor | Elmer A. Benson | 79,245 | 61.90% | |
| Farmer–Labor | George H. Lommen | 48,781 | 38.10% | |
| Total votes | 128,026 | 100.00% | ||
Republican primaryEdit
CandidatesEdit
DeclaredEdit
- Ben Andreen
- Ray P. Chase, Former U.S. Representative (1933-1935) and 9th Minnesota State Auditor (1921-1931)
- Michael Ferch
- O. J. Hagen
- Asher Howard, Former Minnesota State Representative from the 34th district (1917-1923)
- Martin A. Nelson, 1934 and 1936 Republican gubernatorial nominee (unsuccessful)
- Henrik Shipstead, Incumbent U.S. Senator since 1923
- Engelberth Zeiner
ResultsEdit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Henrik Shipstead (Incumbent) | 168,876 | 51.37% | |
| Republican | Martin A. Nelson | 97,812 | 29.75% | |
| Republican | Ray P. Chase | 35,697 | 10.86% | |
| Republican | Ben Andreen | 13,858 | 4.22% | |
| Republican | O. J. Hagen | 5,810 | 1.77% | |
| Republican | Asher Howard | 3,313 | 1.01% | |
| Republican | Michael Ferch | 1,712 | 0.52% | |
| Republican | Engelberth Zeiner | 1,660 | 0.50% | |
| Total votes | 328,738 | 100.00% | ||
General electionEdit
ResultsEdit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Henrik Shipstead (Incumbent) | 641,049 | 53.01% | |
| Farmer–Labor | Elmer A. Benson | 310,875 | 25.71% | |
| Democratic | John E. Regan | 248,658 | 20.56% | |
| Trotskyist Anti-War | Grace Holmes Carlson | 8,761 | 0.72% | |
| Independent | Carl Winter | 256 | 0.02 | |
| Total votes | 1,209,343 | 100.00% | ||
| Majority | 330,174 | 27.30% | ||
| Republican gain from Farmer–Labor | ||||
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
- ^ a b c "Primary Election Returns of Election held September 10, 1940" (PDF). Minnesota Legislature.
- ^ "General Election Returns for Minnesota - Tuesday, November Fifth, 1940" (PDF). Minnesota Legislature.