1966 United States Senate election in Tennessee
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 County results Baker: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Clement: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1966 United States Senate election in Tennessee was held on November 8, 1966, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Republican nominee Howard Baker won the election, defeating Democratic nominee and Tennessee Governor Frank G. Clement with 55.7% of the vote.
In the primary, incumbent Democratic Senator Ross Bass lost to Governor Clement by a little over 2%.
Baker became the first Republican to represent Tennessee since the temporary appointment of Newell Sanders in 1912. He was the first Tennessee Republican to win a full term in the Senate since Reconstruction in 1867 and the first ever to win a popular election to the Senate. He was also the first Republican to win a full term to this Senate seat.
Republican primary
Candidates
- Howard Baker, Republican nominee in the 1964 United States Senate special election in Tennessee
- Kenneth Roberts
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Howard Baker | 112,617 | 75.74% | |
| Republican | Kenneth Roberts | 36,043 | 24.24% | |
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Frank G. Clement, Governor of Tennessee and candidate for the United States Senate in 1964.
- Ross Bass, incumbent U.S. Senator
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Frank G. Clement | 384,322 | 51.22% | |
| Democratic | Ross Bass (incumbent) | 366,079 | 48.78% | |
General election
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Howard Baker | 483,063 | 55.72% | |
| Democratic | Frank G. Clement | 383,843 | 44.27% | |
| None | Write-Ins | 55 | 0.01% | |
| Majority | 99,220 | 10.45% | ||
| Turnout | 866,961 | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||
