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All 35 seats in the Alabama State Senate 18 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Winners by vote share Democratic: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Unopposed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Elections in Alabama |
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The 1966 Alabama Senate election took place on Tuesday, November 8, 1966, to elect 35 representatives to serve four-year terms in the Alabama Senate. The result an electoral wipeout, as all 35 candidates elected were members of the Democratic Party. Across the 35 districts, only 6 seats were actually at stake in the November general election. As the Democratic Party was dominant in the state, state legislative seats were generally decided at the Democratic primary election. This was the first Senate election since a federal court ordered the first legislative reapportionment in the state since 1901.
The Democratic primaries were held on May 1 with a runoff on May 29. Due to late-term redistricting in July 1962, two special Democratic primaries had to be held on August 28 with runoffs on September 11. In the new District 22 (Blount–St. Clair), no candidate from either county won a Senate nomination in the regular Democratic primary, and the new District 30 (Dallas–Lowndes) had its regular primary in Lowndes County voided. [1]
At the beginning of the 1963 session, George C. Hawkins of Etowah was unanimously elected president pro tempore. [2]
For the 1962 election, the legislature adopted a new state senate map, the first reapportionment since 1901. A few counties were swapped around, but rural areas of the state still had an overwhelming advantage in terms of representation. [3] The legislature would be forced to create a fairer senate map which would be in force by the 1966 general election.
Counties in italics were removed from the district, and counties in boldface were added. Districts and counties not listed here were not affected in the redistricting. 11 districts had their boundaries changed as a result of 8 county shuffles.
District | Before | After |
---|---|---|
3rd | Blount–Cullman–Winston | Cullman–Winston |
6th | Etowah–St. Clair | Etowah |
12th | Fayette–Lamar–Walker | Fayette–Walker |
14th | Pickens–Sumter | Lamar–Pickens |
16th | Lowndes | Monroe–Wilcox |
20th | Marengo | Marengo–Sumter |
21st | Baldwin–Escambia–Monroe | Baldwin–Escambia |
22nd | Wilcox | Blount–St. Clair |
24th | Barbour | Barbour–Pike |
25th | Coffee–Crenshaw–Pike | Coffee–Crenshaw |
30th | Dallas | Dallas–Lowndes |
The table below will show the most-populated and least-populated senate districts under the 1901 and 1962 apportionment plans. The population of Alabama at the 1960 census was 3,266,740, with an ideal population of 93,335 people under a 35-district plan.
Plan | District | Population | % of ideal | Diff. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1901 | Jefferson | 634,864 | 680.20% | 41.17 |
Lowndes | 15,417 | 16.52% | ||
1962 | Jefferson | 634,864 | 680.20% | 20.01 |
Bibb–Perry | 31,715 | 33.98% | ||
Party | Candidates | Seats | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Num. | Vote | % | Before | Won | +/– | ||||
Democratic | 35 | 281,022 | 90.18% | 35 | 35 | ![]() | |||
Republican | 6 | 30,566 | 9.81% | 0 | 0 | ![]() | |||
Write-in | 25 | 0.01% | — | 0 | ![]() | ||||
Total | 41 | 311,613 | 100% | 35 | 35 | ![]() |
District | Incumbent | Party | Elected Senator | Party | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | Bert Haltom | Dem | Ed Norton | Dem | ||
2nd | Robert R. Berryman | Dem | Bob Gilchrist | Dem | ||
3rd | Elwood Rutledge | Dem | Harlan G. Allen | Dem | ||
4th | Billy Laxson [a] | Dem | Roscoe O. Roberts | Dem | ||
5th | D. Donald Word | Dem | Clayton Carter | Dem | ||
6th | Ray Wyatt | Dem | George C. Hawkins | Dem | ||
7th | A. C. Shelton | Dem | A. C. Shelton | Dem | ||
8th | G. Kyser Leonard | Dem | Bill Nichols | Dem | ||
9th | Bill Hines | Dem | Julian Lowe | Dem | ||
10th | Upshaw G. Jones [b] | Dem | Sonny Hornsby | Dem | ||
11th | Ryan deGraffenried | Dem | Bill McCain | Dem | ||
12th | Woodrow Roberts | Dem | Bob Wilson | Dem | ||
13th | Larry Dumas | Dem | Larry Dumas | Dem | ||
14th | Aubrey Green | Dem | Gaillard Robison | Dem | ||
15th | Joe Graham | Dem | Jimmy McDow | Dem | ||
16th | Carl Golson | Dem | Roland Cooper | Dem | ||
17th | Bob Kendall | Dem | H. B. Taylor | Dem | ||
18th | Norman Crawford | Dem | H. P. James | Dem | ||
19th | Dennis Porter | Dem | Albert H. Evans | Dem | ||
20th | E. O. Eddins | Dem | E. O. Eddins | Dem | ||
21st | Douglas Webb | Dem | L. W. Brannon | Dem | ||
22nd | Roland Cooper | Dem | Roland Cooper | Dem | ||
23rd | Rufus Barnett | Dem | Neil Metcalf | Dem | ||
24th | Jimmy Clark | Dem | Jimmy Clark | Dem | ||
25th | Alton Turner | Dem | W. Ray Lolley | Dem | ||
26th | Snag Andrews | Dem | Ed Reynolds | Dem | ||
27th | Yetta Samford | Dem | Joseph W. Smith | Dem | ||
28th | Vaughn Hill Robison | Dem | Vaughn Hill Robison | Dem | ||
29th | George Godfrey | Dem | Kenneth Hammond | Dem | ||
30th | Walter C. Givhan | Dem | Walter C. Givhan | Dem | ||
31st | Hugh Moses | Dem | W. Emmett Oden | Dem | ||
32nd | Flute Wilson | Dem | Charles A. Montgomery | Dem | ||
33rd | Will Caffey | Dem | John M. Tyson | Dem | ||
34th | John Gaither | Dem | Pete Mathews | Dem | ||
35th | Carl Farmer | Dem | Charlie Adams | Dem | ||
District | Democratic | Republican | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | Votes | Maj. | Mrg. | |
1st | Ed Norton | 8,962 | 81.67% | J. C. Mauldin | 2,011 | 18.33% | 10,973 | +6,951 | +63.35% |
3rd | Harlan G. Allen | 7,441 | 54.02% | Guy Hunt | 6,334 | 45.98% | 13,775 | +1,107 | +8.04% |
15th | Jimmy McDow | 6,898 | 65.53% | Emmett D. Wyatt | 3,628 | 34.47% | 10,526 | +3,270 | +31.07% |
17th | H. B. Taylor | 6,535 | 68.56% | J. R. Bennett | 2,997 | 31.44% | 9,532 | +3,538 | +37.12% |
28th | Vaughan Hill Robison | 10,228 | 54.41% | Perry O. Hooper | 8,569 | 45.59% | 18,797 | +1,659 | +8.83% |
33rd | John M. Tyson | 24,430 | 77.66% | W. D. Carson | 7,027 | 22.34% | 31,457 | +17,403 | +55.32% |
Source: Alabama Official and Statistical Register, 1963 (p. 777–782) [4] |
Every candidate elected with no opponents was a Democrat.
The first round of the special Democratic primary saw representative Rush "Doc" Smith beat out Roy H. Coshatt for the second-place spot in the runoff by a single vote. After the results were made official, Coshatt decided to contest the election results. His case was thrown out by the state Democratic executive committee, allowing Smith to advance to the September runoff. [5] Smith lost the runoff by 442 votes to radio executive L. D. Bentley.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | → L. D. Bentley | 1,461 | 32.37% | |
Democratic | → Doc Smith | 1,047 | 23.19% | |
Democratic | Roy H. Coshatt | 1,046 | 23.17% | |
Democratic | Ralph LeCroy | 548 | 12.14% | |
Democratic | Oscar N. Fouts | 412 | 9.13% | |
Total votes | 4,514 | 100.00% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | L. D. Bentley | 3,285 | 53.61% | |
Democratic | Doc Smith | 2,843 | 46.39% | |
Total votes | 6,128 | 100.00% |
In the regular Senate primary in Lowndes County, the results were thrown out by the state Democratic executive committee amid allegations of voting irregularies. [6] The official tally had Caswell McCurdy ahead of incumbent senator Carl Golson 936–934. The July redistricting plan saw the Dallas County and Lowndes County senate districts combine, and thus the winner of the Lowndes primary would face off against senator Walter C. Givhan, the winner of the Dallas primary, in August. Both McCurdy and Golson withdrew their claims to the Lowndes nomination, allowing Givhan to advance to the general election. [7]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Walter C. Givhan (inc.) | Unopp. |
Candidates in boldface advanced to the general election. An asterisk (*) denotes a runoff winner who trailed in the first round.
District | Winner | Loser | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | Votes | Maj. | Mrg. | |
5th | Clayton Carter | 12,128 | 59.60% | Clark E. Johnson | 8,222 | 40.40% | 20,350 | +3,906 | +19.19% |
11th | Bill McCain* | 9,165 | 52.89% | Arthur Ferguson | 8,162 | 47.11% | 17,327 | +1,003 | +5.79% |
12th | Bob Wilson | 12,280 | 53.03% | W. C. Walker | 10,876 | 46.97% | 23,156 | +1,404 | +6.06% |
14th | Gaillard Robison | 3,590 | 56.38% | Henry McDaniel | 2,778 | 43.62% | 6,368 | +812 | +12.75% |
21st | L. W. Brannan | 10,568 | 51.77% | W. M. Hodgson | 9,845 | 48.23% | 20,413 | +723 | +3.54% |
34th | Pete Mathews | 6,363 | 58.47% | DeForest Nolen | 4,519 | 41.53% | 10,882 | +1,844 | +16.95% |
Source: Alabama Official and Statistical Register, 1963 (p. 759) [8] |
Additionally, runoffs in District 32 and District 33 were planned, but were canceled after candidates withdrew from their races. Both withdrawals were from candidates who placed second in the first round.
Candidates in boldface advanced to either the general election or a runoff, first-place winners with an asterisk (*) did not face a runoff.
District | First place | Runners-up | Others | Total | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | Candidate | Votes | % | Votes | Maj. | Mrg. | |
1st | Ed Horton* | 8,678 | 58.96% | David Grisham | 6,040 | 41.04% | — | — | — | 14,718 | +2,638 | +17.92% |
2nd | Bob Gilchrist* | 10,697 | 54.37% | Alvis G. Briscoe | 5,758 | 29.27% | Bill Chenault | 3,219 | 16.36% | 19,674 | +4,939 | +25.10% |
3rd | Mutt Allen* | 9,016 | 51.72% | L. D. Bentley | 8,416 | 48.28% | — | — | — | 17,432 | +600 | +3.44% |
4th | Roscoe Roberts* | 11,877 | 85.70% | Bob Schwenn | 1,982 | 14.30% | — | — | — | 13,859 | +9,895 | +71.40% |
5th | Clayton Carter | 8,803 | 48.53% | Clark Johnson | 5,514 | 30.40% | O. G. Whitaker | 3,823 | 21.07% | 18,140 | +3,289 | +18.13% |
6th | George C. Hawkins* | 16,262 | 61.57% | Rowan S. Bone | 10,151 | 38.43% | — | — | — | 26,413 | +6,111 | +23.14% |
7th | A. C. Shelton (inc.)* | 7,712 | 60.19% | Robert M. Parker | 5,101 | 39.81% | — | — | — | 12,813 | +2,611 | +20.38% |
8th | Bill Nichols* | 7,324 | 58.21% | G. Kyser Leonard (inc.) | 5,259 | 41.79% | — | — | — | 12,583 | +2,065 | +16.41% |
9th | Julian Lowe* | 5,574 | 50.87% | Jimmy Jenkins | 2,759 | 25.18% | Buck Bailey | 2,625 | 23.96% | 10,958 | +2,815 | +25.69% |
10th | Sonny Hornsby* | 9,606 | 60.91% | Tom Johnson | 6,164 | 39.09% | — | — | — | 15,770 | +3,442 | +21.83% |
11th | Arthur Ferguson | 6,971 | 41.39% | Bill McCain | 5,177 | 30.73% | Jack McGuire | 4,696 | 27.88% | 16,844 | +1,794 | +10.65% |
12th | Bob Wilson | 8,284 | 35.43% | Carey Walker | 7,742 | 33.11% | Reuben Newton | 7,357 | 31.46% | 23,383 | +542 | +2.32% |
13th | Larry Dumas (inc.) | 74,898 | 85.93% | Rush Lester | 7,415 | 8.51% | Pete Darabaris | 4,845 | 5.56% | 87,158 | +67,483 | +77.43% |
14th | Gaillard Robison | 2,754 | 42.34% | Henry McDaniel | 2,357 | 36.24% | James Swedenburg | 1,393 | 21.42% | 6,504 | +397 | +6.10% |
15th | Jimmy McDow* | 8,373 | 54.81% | Fred Phillips | 4,297 | 28.13% | Harold Harlin | 2,606 | 17.06% | 15,276 | +4,076 | +26.68% |
16th [c] | Caswell McCurdy | 936 | 50.05% | Carl Golson (inc.) | 934 | 49.95% | — | — | — | 1,870 | +2 | +0.10% |
17th | H. B. Taylor* | 8,505 | 52.79% | J. Brunson Kierce | 7,607 | 47.21% | — | — | — | 16,112 | +898 | +5.57% |
18th | H. P. James* | 4,369 | 73.69% | Fritz Jones | 1,560 | 26.31% | — | — | — | 5,929 | +2,809 | +47.38% |
19th | Albert H. Evans* | 8,047 | 66.89% | Julian A. Watters | 3,984 | 33.11% | — | — | — | 12,031 | +4,063 | +33.77% |
21st | L. W. Brannan | 7,994 | 37.02% | W. M. Hodgson | 7,145 | 33.09% | C. LeNoir Thompson | 6,452 | 29.88% | 21,591 | +849 | +3.93% |
23rd | Neil Metcalf* | 6,368 | 62.98% | Bud Boswell | 3,743 | 37.02% | — | — | — | 10,111 | +2,625 | +25.96% |
24th | Jimmy Clark (inc.)* | 3,682 | 85.02% | Thomas L. Manley | 649 | 14.98% | — | — | — | 4,331 | +3,033 | +70.03% |
25th | Ray Lolley* | 8,381 | 56.30% | Bill Stokes | 6,506 | 43.70% | — | — | — | 14,887 | +1,875 | +12.59% |
26th | Ed Reynolds* | 4,315 | 80.90% | Grady Rogers | 1,019 | 19.10% | — | — | — | 5,334 | +3,296 | +61.79% |
27th | Joseph W. Smith* | 5,510 | 50.04% | Bowen Brassell | 4,240 | 38.50% | Zeke Calhoun | 1,262 | 11.46% | 11,012 | +1,270 | +11.53% |
29th | Kenneth Hammond* | 6,861 | 50.15% | Chad B. Hawkins | 6,820 | 49.85% | — | — | — | 13,681 | +41 | +0.30% |
31st | W. Emmett Oden* | 11,329 | 51.42% | Anderson Berryman | 10,705 | 48.58% | — | — | — | 22,034 | +624 | +2.83% |
32nd | Charles Montgomery | 1,840 | 46.64% | S. D. Bayer | 1,075 | 27.25% | Pete Martin | 1,030 | 26.11% | 3,945 | +765 | +19.39% |
33rd | John M. Tyson | 17,122 | 41.97% | Thomas M. Galloway | 10,368 | 25.42% | 2 others [d] | 13,302 | 32.61% | 40,792 | +6,754 | +16.56% |
34th | Pete Mathews | 4,718 | 44.58% | DeForest Nolen | 3,421 | 32.33% | M. J. Norrell | 2,444 | 23.09% | 10,583 | +1,297 | +12.26% |
35th | Charlie Adams* | 7,635 | 64.01% | Jimmy Thrower | 4,292 | 35.99% | — | — | — | 11,927 | +3,343 | +28.03% |
Source: Alabama Official and Statistical Register, 1963 (p. 722–726) [11] |
The following candidates automatically won the Democratic nomination, as no opponent filed to run against them.
A special election in Senate District 10 (Elmore–Tallapoosa) was triggered by the death of incumbent senator Carvel Woodall on February 19, 1959. The Democratic executive committee chose to nominate a candidate instead of holding a primary. Upshaw Jones, the runner-up in the 1958 Democratic primary, was the only candidate certified for the ballot, and thus the special general election was canceled. [12]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Upshaw Jones | Unopp. |
A special election in District 4 (Madison) was triggered by the resignation of Dave Archer upon his appointment to a circuit judgeship in late 1961. James Record, the clerk-auditor of Madison County, was the only candidate certified for the ballot. [13]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | James Record | Unopp. |
The second special election was triggered when the recently-elected James Record was appointed to the Madison County Board of Commissioners in March 1962. Record was succeeded by Billy Laxson.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Billy Laxson | 3,472 | 68.12% | |
Republican | Morton Hutchens | 1,624 | 31.86% | |
Write-in | O. G. Pitts | 1 | 0.02% | |
Total votes | 5,097 | 100.00% |