1968 United States Senate election in Ohio

The 1968 United States Senate election in Ohio took place on November 5, 1968. Incumbent Senator Frank Lausche ran for re-election to a third term, but lost the Democratic primary to former U.S. Representative John J. Gilligan. Before losing the primary to the more solidly liberal Gilligan, Lausche had one of the most conservative voting record among Senate Democrats outside of The South, leaving the Democratic Party very disappointed. In the general election, Gilligan lost to Republican Ohio Attorney General William Saxbe in a close race. Saxbe's victory increased the number of Senate Republicans in the 91st Congress. He would serve 5 years in the Senate before being nominated by President Richard Nixon to be U.S Attorney General, he resigned the seat after being confirmed. Gilligan, who in January 1974 was serving as the Governor of Ohio, named Saxbe's successor.

1968 United States Senate election in Ohio

← 1962 November 5, 1968 1974 →

Nominee William B. Saxbe John J. Gilligan Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 1,928,964 1,814,152 Percentage 51.53% 48.47%

County results Saxbe:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Gilligan:      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. senator before election Frank J. Lausche Democratic Elected U.S. Senator William Saxbe Republican

Democratic primary

Candidates

• John J. Gilligan, former U.S. Representative from Cincinnati (1965–67)
• Frank Lausche, incumbent Senator since 1957

Democratic primary results^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John J. Gilligan	544,814	55.40%
	Democratic	Frank Lausche (incumbent)	438,588	44.60%
Total votes			983,402	100.00%

Republican primary

Candidates

• Albert Edward Payne
• William B. Saxbe, Attorney General of Ohio
• William L. White, perennial candidate from Newark

Republican primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	William B. Saxbe	575,178	82.31%
	Republican	William L. White	71,191	10.91%
	Republican	Albert Edward Payne	52,393	7.50%
Total votes			698,762	100.00%

Results

1968 United States Senate election in Ohio^[3][4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	William B. Saxbe	1,928,964	51.53%	13.09
	Democratic	John J. Gilligan	1,814,152	48.47%	13.09
	Independent	Richard Wingerter (write-in)	2	0.00%	N/A
	Independent	Eugene P. Okey (write-in)	1	0.00%	N/A
	Socialist Labor	Peter M. Kapitz (write-in)	1	0.00%	N/A
Total votes			3,743,120	100.0%

See also

• 1968 United States Senate elections