1954 United States Senate special election in California

1954 United States Senate special election in California

←  1950 November 2, 1954 1956  →

Nominee Thomas Kuchel Sam Yorty Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,090,836 1,788,071 Percentage 53.21% 45.50%

County results Kuchel:     40-50%     50-60%     60-70%     70-80% Yorty:     40-50%     50-60%

U.S. senator before election Thomas Kuchel Republican Elected U.S. Senator Thomas Kuchel Republican

The 1954 United States Senate special election in California was held on November 2, 1954, to elect a U.S. Senator to complete the unexpired term of Senator Richard Nixon, who resigned on becoming Vice President of the United States following the 1952 presidential election. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Thomas Kuchel, who had been appointed by Governor Earl Warren, won election to the remainder of the term, defeating Democratic nominee Sam Yorty.

Primary elections were held on June 8, 1954.

Republican primary

Candidates

• Isobel M. Cerney, teacher and writer (cross-filing)
• William T. Hooley, fireman ^[1]
• Thomas Kuchel, incumbent U.S. Senator
• Sam Yorty, U.S. Representative from Los Angeles (cross-filing)

Results

Republican primary results ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Thomas Kuchel	1,118,312	88.57
	Democratic	Sam Yorty	100,746	7.98
	Republican	William T. Hooley	32,684	2.59
	Independent–Progressive	Isobel M. Cerney	10,826	0.86
Total votes			1,262,568	100.00

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Isobel M. Cerney, teacher and writer ^[1] (cross-filing)
• Adam C. Derkum, accountant, ^[1] unsuccessful candidate for Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in 1946
• Leo Gallagher, lawyer ^[1]
• Thomas Kuchel, incumbent U.S. Senator (cross-filing)
• Sam Yorty, U.S. Representative from Los Angeles

Results

Democratic primary results ^{[2] [3] [5]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Sam Yorty	829,977	52.38
	Republican	Thomas Kuchel	455,530	28.75
	Democratic	Leo Gallagher	168,970	10.66
	Democratic	Adam C. Derkum	103,484	6.53
	Independent–Progressive	Isobel M. Cerney	26,667	1.68
Total votes			1,584,628	100.00

Independent–Progressive primary

Candidates

• Isobel M. Cerney, teacher and writer

Results

Independent–Progressive primary results ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent–Progressive	Isobel M. Cerney	3,405	100.00
Total votes			3,405	100.00

General election

Results

Shift by county

Trend by county

Legend

•   Republican — >15%
•   Republican — +12.5−15%
•   Republican — +10−12.5%
•   Republican — +7.5−10%
•   Republican — +5−7.5%
•   Republican — +2.5−5%
•   Republican — +0−2.5%
•   Democratic — +0−2.5%
•   Democratic — +2.5−5%
•   Democratic — +5−7.5%
•   Democratic — +7.5-10%
•   Democratic — +10−12.5%
•   Democratic — +12.5−15%
•   Democratic — >15%

1954 United States Senate special election in California ^{[6] [7] [8] [9]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Thomas Kuchel (Incumbent)	2,090,836	53.21
	Democratic	Sam Yorty	1,788,071	45.50
	Independent–Progressive	Isobel M. Cerney	50,506	1.29
	None	Scattering	255	0.01
Majority			302,765	7.71
Turnout			3,929,668
	Republican hold

See also

• 1954 United States Senate elections

References

1. "Certified List of Candidates for Nomination". Placerville Mountain-Democrat. Placerville, California. May 13, 1954. p. 24. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
2. CA Primary 1954, p. 13.
3. Barclay, p. 598.
4. "CA US Senate Special, 1954 - R Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
5. "CA US Senate Special, 1954 - D Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
6. "CA US Senate Special, 1954". Our Campaigns. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
7. CA General 1954, p. 10.
8. Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives (October 15, 1955). "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 2, 1954" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office.
9. Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 83.

Bibliography

• Compiled by Frank M. Jordan, Secretary of State (1940). State of California. Statement of Vote. Direct Primary Election June 8, 1954. California State Printing Office.
• Compiled by Frank M. Jordan, Secretary of State (1940). State of California. Statement of Vote. General Election November 2, 1954. California State Printing Office.
• Congressional Elections, 1946-1996. California, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc. 1998. ISBN   1-56802-248-4.
• Barclay, Thomas S. (December 1954). "The 1954 Election in California" . The Western Political Quarterly. 7 (4). University of Utah on behalf of the Western Political Science Association: 597–604. doi:10.2307/442809. JSTOR   442809 . Retrieved September 5, 2021.