1970 United States Senate election in Texas

The 1970 United States Senate election in Texas was held on November 3, 1970. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Ralph Yarborough was defeated by former U.S. Representative Lloyd Bentsen in the Democratic primary. Bentsen then defeated Republican U.S. Representative and future president George H. W. Bush in the general election. When Bush was running for president in 1988, his Democratic opponent, Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis, selected Bentsen as his vice presidential running mate.

1970 United States Senate election in Texas

← 1964 November 3, 1970 1976 →

Nominee Lloyd Bentsen George H. W. Bush Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,194,069 1,035,794 Percentage 53.55% 46.45%

County results Congressional district results Bentsen:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Bush:      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. senator before election Ralph Yarborough Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen Democratic

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Ralph Yarborough, incumbent U.S. Senator
• Lloyd Bentsen, former U.S. Representative from Hidalgo County

Campaign

Yarborough, a liberal icon, was challenged by the more conservative Bentsen in the Democratic primary. In what was characterized as an extremely bitter campaign, Bentsen accused Yarborough of supporting desegregation busing and criticized his opposition to the Vietnam War.^[1] Many Texas liberals threatened to support the Republican Bush if Bentsen won the primary, believing that the liberal wing of the Texas Democratic Party would be threatened if Bentsen were elected.^[1] Bentsen ultimately defeated Yarborough in the Democratic primary on May 2, 1970.^[2]

Results

Runoff results by county

Bentsen

•   Bentsen—80–90%
•   Bentsen—70–80%
•   Bentsen—60–70%
•   Bentsen—50–60%

Yarborough

•   Yarborough—>90%
•   Yarborough—70–80%
•   Yarborough—60–70%
•   Yarborough—50–60%

Democratic primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Lloyd Bentsen	841,316	53.7%
	Democratic	Ralph Yarborough (incumbent)	726,477	46.3%
Total votes			1,567,793	100.0%

Republican primary

Bush was unopposed for the Republican nomination.

Candidates

• George H. W. Bush, U.S. Representative, nominee in 1964

General election

The general election was held November 3, 1970. Bentsen defeated Bush, 53.5% – 46.5%.^[3]

Results

General election results^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Lloyd Bentsen	1,194,069	53.55%	2.67%
	Republican	George H. W. Bush	1,035,794	46.45%	2.89%
Total votes			2,229,863	100.0%
	Democratic hold