1978 United States Senate Election In Alabama on:
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The 1978 United States Senate election in Alabama was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator John Sparkman decided to retire and
The 1978 United States Senate election in Alabama was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator John Sparkman decided to retire and Alabama Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Alabama is the highest court in the state of Alabama. The court consists of a chief justice and eight associate justices. Each justice is elected in partisan elections for staggered six-year terms. The Supreme Court is house ...
Chief Justice Howell Heflin
Howell Thomas Heflin (June 19, 1921 – March 29, 2005) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the United States Senate, representing Alabama, from 1979 to 1997.
Early life
Heflin was born on June 19, 1921, in Poulan, Georgia. He at ...
was elected to succeed him.
Heflin won the Democratic primary against Rep. Walter Flowers and faced only nominal opposition from Prohibition Party nominee Jerome Couch in the general election.
Democratic primary
Candidates
* John Baker, Alabama State Senator * Walter Flowers, U.S. Representative *Howell Heflin
Howell Thomas Heflin (June 19, 1921 – March 29, 2005) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the United States Senate, representing Alabama, from 1979 to 1997.
Early life
Heflin was born on June 19, 1921, in Poulan, Georgia. He at ...
, former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court
* Mac Newton
* Margaret Stewart, perennial candidate
* Gordon Tucker
* Glenn Hewitt
Campaign
Prior to 1978, Alabama had never popularly elected any Senator from a party other than theDemocratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
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, and Democratic candidates typically faced nominal opposition in the general election. Therefore, victory in the Democratic primary was considered tantamount to election.
Incumbent Democrat John Sparkman declined to seek a seventh consecutive term in office. Senator Sparkman retired as the longest-serving Senator in Alabama history.
Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Howell Heflin
Howell Thomas Heflin (June 19, 1921 – March 29, 2005) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the United States Senate, representing Alabama, from 1979 to 1997.
Early life
Heflin was born on June 19, 1921, in Poulan, Georgia. He at ...
and Congressman Walter Flowers of Tuscaloosa were the leading candidates. Heflin came from a noted Alabama political family which included former Senator James Thomas Heflin
James Thomas Heflin (April 9, 1869 – April 22, 1951), nicknamed "Cotton Tom", was an American politician who served as a United States representative and United States senator from Alabama.
Early life
Born in Louina, Alabama, he attended t ...
, a famous advocate of white supremacy. Flowers was a strong ally of Governor George Wallace
George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Alabama for four terms. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best remembered for his staunch segregationist and ...
, a critic of President Jimmy Carter, and had cast a crucial vote to impeach President Richard Nixon, despite Nixon's strong support in the state.
During the campaign, Heflin attempted to tie himself to the late Senator James Allen. He was rebuffed by Allen's widow, Maryon, who succeeded her husband as Senator and supported Flowers. Maryon noted that Heflin worked for her husband's primary opponent during the 1974 campaign.
Results
Heflin and Flowers both proceeded to a run-off election, where Heflin won by over 250,000 votes.Republican primary
Candidates
Withdrew
*James D. Martin
James Douglas Martin (September 1, 1918 – October 30, 2017) was an American politician.
Martin was born in Tarrant, Alabama. He served as a member for the 7th district of Alabama of the United States House of Representatives
The U ...
, former U.S. Representative for Alabama's 7th congressional district
Alabama's 7th congressional district is a United States congressional district in Alabama that elects a representative to the United States House of Representatives. The district encompasses Choctaw County, Alabama, Choctaw, Dallas County, Alab ...
(to run in the special election)
After James Martin withdrew from the race to run in the concurrent special election to fill the late Senator Allen's seat, the Republican Party was left without a candidate for this election.
General election
Results
See also
*1978 United States Senate elections
The 1978 United States Senate elections in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. Thirteen seats changed hands between parties, resulting in a net gain of three seats for the Republicans. Democrats nevertheless retained a 58&nd ...
* 1978 Alabama gubernatorial election
The 1978 Alabama gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 1978, to elect the governor of Alabama. Incumbent Democratic Governor George Wallace did not run for re-election. Fob James, a businessman who had switched from the Republican P ...
References
{{US Third Party Election 1978 Alabama elections Alabama1978
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