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Results -- Republican holds in light red, pickups in dark red, Democratic holds in light blue, pickups in dark blue
The U.S. Senate election, 1980 was an election for the United States Senate that coincided with Ronald W. Reagan's election to the presidency. Reagan's large margin of victory over incumbent James E. Carter Jr. pulled in many Democratic voters and gave a huge boost to Republican senate candidates.
The Republicans gained a net of twelve seats from the Democrats, the largest swing since 1958, and gained control of the Senate, 53-46. Majority and minority leaders Robert C. Byrd and Howard H. Baker Jr. exchanged places.
Without losing any seats, the Republicans took open seats in Alabama, Alaska, and Florida, and defeated nine incumbents: Herman Talmadge (D-Ga.), Frank Church (D-Idaho), Birch E. Bayh II (D-Ind.), John Culver (D-Iowa), John Durkin (D-N.H.), Robert Morgan (D-N.C.), 1972 presidential nominee George S. McGovern (D-S.D.), Warren Magnuson (D-Wash.), and Gaylord Nelson (D-Wis.) (see Reagan's coattails).
Notable new senators included future vice-president J. Danforth Quayle III (R-Ind.). Alfonse M. D'Amato (R-N.Y.) defeated incumbent liberal Republican icon Jacob Javits (R-N.Y.) in a primary, demonstrating the ascendancy of conservative Republicans.
In 1982, Harrison A. Williams (D-N.J.) had resigned from the Senate rather than face a vote on his expulsion over the Abscam scandal. He was replaced by Republican Nicholas F. Brady. This is not reflected in the party totals.
Senate contests in 1980
| State
| Incumbent
| Party
| Status
| Opposing Candidates
|
| Alabama
| Donald W. Stewart
| Democrat
| Retired: Republican victory, 50.2 - 47.1
| Jeremiah Denton (Republican)
James E. Folsom, Jr. (Democrat)
|
| Alaska
| Mike Gravel
| Democrat
| Defeated in primary: Republican victory, 53.7 - 45.9
| Frank H. Murkowski (Republican)
Clark S. Gruening (Democrat)
|
| Arizona
| Barry Goldwater
| Republican
| Re-elected, 49.5 - 48.4
| Bill Schultz (Democrat)
|
| Arkansas
| Dale Bumpers
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 59.1 - 40.9
| Bill Clark (Republican)
|
| California
| Alan Cranston
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 56.5 - 37.1
| Paul Gann (Republican)
|
| Colorado
| Gary Warren Hart
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 50.3 - 48.7
| Mary E. Buchanan (Republican)
|
| Connecticut
| Abraham A. Ribicoff
| Democrat
| Retired: Democrat victory, 56.3 - 42.9
| Christopher J. Dodd (Democrat)
James L. Buckley (Republican)
|
| Florida
| Richard Stone
| Democrat
| Retired: Republican victory, 51.7 - 48.3
| Paula Hawkins (Republican)
Bill Gunter (Democrat)
|
| Georgia
| Herman E. Talmadge
| Democrat
| Defeated, 50.9 - 49.1
| Mack Mattingly (Republican)
|
| Hawaii
| Daniel K. Inouye
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 77.9 - 18.4
| Cooper Brown (Republican)
|
| Idaho
| Frank Church
| Democrat
| Defeated, 49.7 - 48.8
| Steven D. Symms (Republican)
|
| Illinois
| Adlai E. Stevenson III
| Democrat
| Retired: Democrat victory, 56.0 - 42.5
| Alan J. Dixon (Democrat)
David C. O'Neal (Republican)
|
| Indiana
| Birch Bayh
| Democrat
| Defeated, 53.8 - 46.2
| Dan Quayle (Republican)
|
| Iowa
| John C. Culver
| Democrat
| Defeated, 53.5 - 45.5
| Charles E. Grassley (Republican)
|
| Kansas
| Bob Dole
| Republican
| Re-elected, 63.8 - 36.2
| John Simpson (Democrat)
|
| Kentucky
| Wendell H. Ford
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 65.1 - 34.9
| Mary L. Foust (Republican)
|
| Louisiana
| Russell B. Long
| Democrat
| Re-elected, in Primary
|
|
| Maryland
| Charles Mathias, Jr.
| Republican
| Re-elected, 66.2 - 33.8
| Edward T. Conroy (Democrat)
|
| Missouri
| Thomas F. Eagleton
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 52.0 - 47.7
| Gene McNary (Republican)
|
| Nevada
| Paul Laxalt
| Republican
| Re-elected, 58.5 - 37.4
| Mary Gojack (Democrat)
|
| New Hampshire
| John A. Durkin
| Democrat
| Defeated, 52.1 - 47.8
| Warren B. Rudman (Republican)
|
| New York
| Jacob K. Javits
| Republican
| Defeated in primary: Republican victory, 44.9 - 43.5 - 11.0
| Alfonse D'Amato (Republican)
Elizabeth Holtzman (Democrat)
Jacob K. Javits (Liberal)
|
| North Carolina
| Robert Burren Morgan
| Democrat
| Defeated, 50.0 - 49.4
| John P. East (Republican)
|
| North Dakota
| Milton R. Young
| Republican
| Retired: Republican victory, 70.3 - 29.0
| Mark Andrews (Republican)
Kent Johanneson (Democrat)
|
| Ohio
| John Glenn
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 68.8 - 28.2
| James E. Betts (Republican)
|
| Oklahoma
| Henry Bellmon
| Republican
| Retired: Republican victory, 53.5 - 43.5
| Don Nickles (Republican)
Andrew Coats (Democrat)
|
| Oregon
| Bob Packwood
| Republican
| Re-elected, 52.1 - 44.0
| Ted Kulongoski (Democrat)
|
| Pennsylvania
| Richard S. Schweiker
| Republican
| Retired: Republican victory, 50.5 - 48.0
| Arlen Specter (Republican)
Pete Flaherty (Democrat)
|
| South Carolina
| Ernest F. Hollings
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 70.4 - 29.6
| Marshall T. Mays (Republican)
|
| South Dakota
| George S. McGovern
| Democrat
| Defeated, 58.2 - 39.4
| James Abdnor (Republican)
|
| Utah
| Jake Garn
| Republican
| Re-elected, 73.6 - 25.5
| Dan Berman (Democrat)
|
| Vermont
| Patrick J. Leahy
| Democrat
| Re-elected, 49.8 - 48.5
| Stewart M. Ledbetter (Republican)
|
| Washington
| Warren G. Magnuson
| Democrat
| Defeated, 54.2 - 45.8
| Slade Gorton (Republican)
|
| Wisconsin
| Gaylord Nelson
| Democrat
| Defeated, 50.2 - 48.3
| Bob Kasten (Republican)
|
See also
Senate composition before and after elections
