The 1974 Massachusetts general election was held on November 5, 1974, throughout

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. Democratic and Republican candidates were selected in party primaries held September 10, 1974. The Democratic primary in this election was notably competitive, with formidable challenges to two incumbent Democrats (Secretary of the Commonwealth

John Davoren John Francis Xavier Davoren (July 27, 1915 – August 24, 1997) was a U.S. politician who served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1955 to 1967 and Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth from 1967 to 1974. Whil ...

, who lost, and Treasurer Robert Q. Crane, who narrowly won) and two open primaries (for Governor and Attorney General). In the general election, Democrats swept the statewide offices quite easily. Republican support may have been held down by the weight of the ongoing

Watergate scandal The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...

and the resignation of President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

Governor and lieutenant governor

Democrats

Michael Dukakis Michael Stanley Dukakis (; born November 3, 1933) is an American retired lawyer and politician who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975 to 1979 and again from 1983 to 1991. He is the longest-serving governor in Massachusetts history a ...

and

Thomas P. O'Neill III Thomas Phillip O'Neill III (born September 20, 1944) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 65th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. Early life and education Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he is the son of Mildred Ann ...

were elected Governor and Lieutenant Governor, respectively, over Republican incumbents

Francis W. Sargent Francis Williams Sargent (July 29, 1915 – October 22, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 64th governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 63rd Lieutenant Govern ...

and

Donald R. Dwight Donald Rathbun Dwight (born March 26, 1931) is an American newspaper executive and politician who served as the 64th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts from 1971 to 1975. Early life Donald Rathbun Dwight was born on March 26, 1931, in Holyoke, ...

Attorney general

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Robert H. Quinn Robert Henry Quinn (1928-2014) was a Massachusetts attorney and politician. Early life Quinn was born January 30, 1928, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the youngest of seven children. When Quinn was six his father died. Quinn received a sch ...

declined to run for re-election and instead ran for Governor. In the open primary to fill his seat, former Lt. Governor

Francis X. Bellotti Francis Xavier Bellotti (born May 3, 1923) is an American lawyer and politician. In his first campaign he was the Democratic nominee for District Attorney of Norfolk County in 1958, but was defeated in the general election. In 1962 Bellotti was ...

won the Democratic nomination. Bellotti defeated Republican nominee Josiah Spaulding in a close race.

Democratic primary

Candidates

, former Lt. Governor and nominee for Governor in 1964 * Barry T. Hannon, Norfolk County Register of Deeds *

Edward Francis Harrington Edward Francis Harrington (born September 16, 1933) is a Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Early life Harrington was born in Fall River, Massachusetts. He graduated from S ...

, attorney and former prosecutor of Raymond L.S. Patriarca *Edward M. O'Brien * S. Lester Ralph, mayor of

Somerville Somerville may refer to: *Somerville College, Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford Places *Somerville, Victoria, Australia * Somerville, Western Australia, a suburb of Kalgoorlie, Australia * Somerville, New Zealand, a subur ...

and Episcopal minister *

George Sacco George Lawrence Sacco Jr. (July 19, 1936–) is an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and was a candidate for Massachusetts Attorney General. Early life Sacco was born on July 19, ...

, State Representative from Medford

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

*Charles Codman Cabot Jr., chairman of the Outdoor Advertising Board * William I. Cowin, Massachusetts Secretary of Administration and Finance *

Josiah Spaulding Josiah Augustus "Si" Spaulding (December 21, 1922 – March 27, 1983) was an American businessman, attorney, and politician. Education and military service Spaulding graduated from the Hotchkiss School and Yale University in 1947, where he was ...

, former chair of the

Massachusetts Republican Party The Massachusetts Republican Party (MassGOP) is the Massachusetts branch of the U.S. Republican Party. In accordance with Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 52, the party is governed by a state committee which consists of one man and one woma ...

and nominee for U.S. Senate in 1970

Results

General election

Secretary of the Commonwealth

was defeated in the Democratic primary by

Paul Guzzi Paul Henry Guzzi (born June 17, 1942) is an American businessman and former Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth. He was president and chief executive officer of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce for 19 years. Biography Paul Guzz ...

. Guzzi went on to defeat Republican State Senator John M. Quinlan in the general election.

Democratic primary

Candidates

, incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth *

, State Representative from

Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film * Newton ( ...

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Declared

= * John M. Quinlan, State Senator

=Withdrew at convention

= *

Ron Burton Ronald E. Burton (July 25, 1936 – September 13, 2003) was an American football player in the American Football League (AFL) for the Boston Patriots. He was a consensus All-American running back at Northwestern University, and is a member of ...

, former

Boston Patriots Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most ...

running back

Results

Following Burton's withdrawal, Quinlan was unopposed for the Republican nomination.

General election

Treasurer and Receiver-General

Incumbent Treasurer and Receiver-General Robert Q. Crane defeated Charles Mark Furcolo in the Democratic Primary. Erna Ballantine ran an unsuccessful sticker campaign for the Republican nomination.

Democratic primary

Candidates

* Robert Q. Crane, incumbent Treasurer and Receiver-General *Charles Mark Furcolo, Boston attorney and son of

Foster Furcolo John Foster Furcolo (July 29, 1911 – July 5, 1995) was an American lawyer, writer, and Democratic Party politician from Massachusetts. He was the state's 60th governor, and also represented the state as a member of the United States House of ...

Results

General election

Auditor

Incumbent

Auditor An auditor is a person or a firm appointed by a company to execute an audit.Practical Auditing, Kul Narsingh Shrestha, 2012, Nabin Prakashan, Nepal To act as an auditor, a person should be certified by the regulatory authority of accounting and au ...

Thaddeus M. Buczko Thaddeus M. Buczko (February 23, 1926 – March 7, 2021) was an American politician who served as a Salem, Massachusetts city councillor, a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and as Massachusetts Auditor. Additionally, from 19 ...

was unopposed in the Democratic primary and the general election.

General election

United States House of Representatives

All of Massachusetts' twelve seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. Ten seats were won by candidates seeking re-election. The 3rd District seat was won by

Joseph D. Early Joseph Daniel Early (January 31, 1933 – November 9, 2012) was an American politician. He represented the third district of Massachusetts in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1975 to 1993. Early was born in Worcester, Massachusetts on Ja ...

, who succeeded retiring Democrat

Harold Donohue Harold Daniel Donohue (June 18, 1901 – November 4, 1984) was an politics in the United States, American politician. He represented the United States House of Representatives, Massachusetts District 3, third district and United States House of R ...

. The 5th District seat was won by Democrat

Paul Tsongas Paul Efthemios Tsongas (; February 14, 1941 – January 18, 1997) was an American politician who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1979 until 1985 and in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 until 197 ...

, who defeated incumbent Republican Paul W. Cronin.

References

{{Massachusetts Elections