| Elections in Virginia |
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The 1978 United States Senate election in Virginia was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Republican Senator William L. Scott did not run for re-election to a second term. Republican former Secretary of the Navy John Warner narrowly defeated Democratic Attorney General of Virginia Andrew P. Miller to succeed him. Originally, this election was a match between Republican Richard Obenshain and Miller, then Obenshain died in a plane crash, leaving the party in disarray. Warner was then nominated to run in Obenshain's place, and his victorious election thrust him into a thirty-year career in the United States Senate, which started with this election.
Republican nomination
Candidates
- Linwood Holton, former Governor of Virginia (1970–1974) and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs (1974–1975)
- Nathan H. Miller, State Senator from Harrisonburg
- Richard D. Obenshain, Chairman of the Virginia Republican Party since 1972 and nominee for Attorney General in 1969
- John W. Warner, former United States Secretary of the Navy
Convention
| 1978 Virginia Republican Convention[1] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballot | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Obenshain | 1,192 | 1,261 | 1,338 | 1,521 | 1,516 | 1,580 |
| Warner | 853 | 908 | 996 | 1,338 | 1,393 | 1,474 |
| Holton | 780 | 751 | 620 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Miller | 262 | 160 | 122 | 201 | 166 | 0 |
Obenshain's victory set up the general election as a rematch of the 1969 Attorney General race between him and Andrew P. Miller, the Democratic nominee who defeated Obenshain in 1969.
Aftermath
On August 2, Obenshain died in a twin-engine plane crash, effectively shaking up this election. He was then replaced by Warner after other recruits turned down the chance to be nominated in respect for Obenshain.[2][3]
General election
Candidates
- Andrew P. Miller, Attorney General of Virginia (Democratic)
- John Warner, former United States Secretary of the Navy (Republican)
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Warner | 613,232 | 50.17% | -1.28% | |
| Democratic | Andrew P. Miller | 608,511 | 49.79% | +3.67% | |
| Write-ins | 513 | 0.04% | +0.04% | ||
| Majority | 4,721 | 0.39% | +0.39% | ||
| Turnout | 1,222,256 | ||||
| Republican hold | |||||
See also
References
- ^ "Our Campaigns - VA US Senate - R Convention Race - Jun 03, 1978".
- ^ Ken Ringle (August 4, 1978). "Crash Kills Obenshain". Washington Post. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
- ^ Harden, Blaine (August 4, 1978). "Pilot of Obenshain Plane Called 'Very Cautious'". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
- ^ "Our Campaigns - VA US Senate Race - Nov 07, 1978".
- ^ Clerk of the United States House of Representatives (1979). "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 7, 1978" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office.