1960 United States Senate special election in Missouri

The 1960 United States Senate special election in Missouri took place on November 8, 1960 in Missouri. The incumbent Democratic Senator, Thomas C. Hennings Jr., had died on September 13, 1960. Edward V. Long, the incumbent Lieutenant Governor of Missouri, was appointed to the seat on September 23, 1960,^[1] and won the special election. He defeated Republican nominee Lon Hocker, winning 53.2% of the vote. Long outperformed Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kennedy, who won 50.3% in Missouri in the presidential election.

1960 United States Senate special election in Missouri

← 1956 1962 →

Nominee Edward V. Long Lon Hocker Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 999,656 880,576 Percentage 53.17% 46.83%

County results Long:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Hocker:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

U.S. senator before election Edward V. Long Democratic Elected U.S. senator Edward V. Long Democratic

Democratic convention

Following the death of Hennings, the Missouri Democratic Party held a special convention to nominate a successor and candidate for the special election. The convention was deadlocked between Charles Harrison Brown, Representative for Missouri's 7th district, and James T. Blair Jr, the Governor of Missouri.^[1] Long emerged as a compromise candidate, and was endorsed by the convention on September 21.^[1]

Results

1960 United States Senate special election in Missouri^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Edward V. Long (incumbent)	999,656	53.17	−3.24
	Republican	Lon Hocker	880,576	46.83	+3.24
Majority			119,080	6.34
Turnout			1,880,232
	Democratic hold

References

1. "Edward V. Long (1908–1972)". Missouri Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
2. Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives (1961). "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 8, 1960" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 25.