1978 United States Senate election in New Jersey
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 County results Bradley: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Bell: 40–50% 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 1978 United States Senate election in New Jersey was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Clifford P. Case ran for re-election to a fifth term in office, but was narrowly defeated in the Republican primary by anti-tax conservative Jeff Bell, who then went on to lose the general election to Democratic nominee Bill Bradley.
Primary elections
Primary elections were held on June 6, 1978.[1]
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Bill Bradley, former professional basketball player
- Richard Leone, former New Jersey State Treasurer
- Alexander J. Menza, State Senator
- Kenneth C. McCarthy
- Wesley K. Bell, former Mayor of Stafford Township
- Ray Rollinson
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Bill Bradley | 217,502 | 58.90 | |
| Democratic | Richard Leone | 97,667 | 26.45 | |
| Democratic | Alexander J. Menza | 32,386 | 8.77 | |
| Democratic | Kenneth C. McCarthy | 9,524 | 2.58 | |
| Democratic | Wesley K. Bell | 8,800 | 2.38 | |
| Democratic | Ray Rollinson | 3,374 | 0.91 | |
| Total votes | 369,253 | 100.00 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Jeff Bell, political aide
- Clifford P. Case, incumbent U.S. Senator
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jeff Bell | 118,555 | 50.74 | |
| Republican | Clifford P. Case (incumbent) | 115,082 | 49.26 | |
| Total votes | 233,637 | 100.00 | ||
General election
Candidates
Major party candidates
- Bill Bradley, Democratic
- Jeff Bell, Republican
Other candidates
- Herbert H. Shaw, Independent
- Bill Gahres, Independent
- Jack Moyers, Libertarian
- Robert Bowen, Labor
- J.M. Carter, Independent
- Jasper C. Gould, Independent
- William R. Thorn, Independent
- Paul Ferguson, Socialist Labor
- Alice Conner, Socialist Workers
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Bill Bradley | 1,082,960 | 55.32% | ||
| Republican | Jeff Bell | 844,200 | 43.13% | ||
| Independent | Herbert H. Shaw | 4,736 | 0.24% | ||
| Independent | Bill Gahres | 3,817 | 0.20% | ||
| Libertarian | Jack Moyers | 3,809 | 0.20% | ||
| U.S. Labor | Robert Bowen | 3,656 | 0.19% | ||
| Independent | J.M. Carter | 3,618 | 0.19% | ||
| Independent | Jasper C. Gould | 2,955 | 0.15% | ||
| Independent | William R. Thorn | 2,776 | 0.14% | ||
| Socialist Labor | Paul Ferguson | 2,604 | 0.13% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Alice Conner | 2,384 | 0.12% | ||
| Total votes | 1,957,515 | 100.00% | |||
| Democratic gain from Republican | |||||
References
- ^ a b c "1978 Primary Election Results" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. 1978. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
- ^ "1978 General Election Results" (PDF). Secretary of State of New Jersey. 1978. Retrieved November 12, 2018.