1972 United States Senate election in Arkansas

none March 2026 September 2023 1972 United States Senate election in Arkansas Arkansas 1924 presidential no 1966 United States Senate election in Arkansas 1966 1978 United States Senate election in Arkansas 1978 November 7, 1972 File:John L McClellan.png 150x150px John L. McClellan Democratic Party (United States) 386,398 60.88% 3x4.svg Wayne Babbitt Republican Party (United States) 248,238 39.12% 1972 United States Senate election in Arkansas results map by county.svg 210px County resultsMcClellan: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80%Babbitt: #e27f7f 50–60% U.S. Senator John L. McClellan Democratic Party (US) John L. McClellan Democratic Party (US) The 1972 United States Senate election in Arkansas took place on November 7, 1972. Incumbent U.S. Senator John L. McClellan was re-elected to a sixth term in office, defeating U.S. Representative David Pryor in a hotly contested primary. In the general election, McClellan easily defeated Republican physician Wayne Babbitt. This was McClellan's final campaign; he died in his sleep in 1977. Pryor was elected governor of Arkansas in 1974 and won the race to succeed McClellan in 1978. This would also mark the last time a Democrat was elected to this seat who was not a member of the Pryor family. Arkansas was one of fifteen states, alongside Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, South Dakota and West Virginia, that were won by Republican President Richard Nixon in 1972 that elected Democrats to the United States Senate. Democratic primary Candidates Ted Boswell Foster Johnson John L. McClellan, incumbent senator David Pryor, U.S. representative from Camden Results 1972 Democratic U.S. Senate primary resultshttps://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=208779 Our Campaigns - AR US Senate - D Primary Race - May 16, 1972 John L. McClellan (inc.) Democratic Party (United States) 220,588 44.70% David Pryor Democratic Party (United States) 204,058 41.35% Ted Boswell Democratic Party (United States) 62,496 12.66% Foster Johnson Democratic Party (United States) 6,358 1.29% 493,500 100.00% Run-off results Since no candidate received a majority in the initial primary, a run-off election was held on June 13 between McClellan and Pryor. 1972 Democratic U.S. Senate run-off resultshttps://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=208780 Our Campaigns - AR US Senate - D Runoff Race - Jun 13, 1972 John L. McClellan (inc.) Democratic Party (United States) 242,983 52.00% David Pryor Democratic Party (United States) 224,262 48.00% 467,245 100.00% General election Results General election resultshttps://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=6496 Our Campaigns - AR US Senate Race - Nov 07, 1972 http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1972election.pdf Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 7, 1972 Clerk of the United States House of Representatives U.S. Government Printing Office 1973 Democratic Party (United States) John L. McClellan (inc.) 386,398 60.88% 39.11 Republican Party (United States) Wayne H. Babbitt 248,238 39.12% N/A 634,636 0.02% See also 1972 United States Senate elections References 1972 Arkansas United States Senate