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County Results Truman: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Patterson: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The1934 United States Senate election in Missouri was held on November 6, 1934. IncumbentRepublican U.S. SenatorRoscoe Patterson, first elected in 1928, sought reelection to a second term. He was defeated by theDemocratic candidate, futureVice President andPresident of the United StatesHarry Truman.[1]
Harry Truman, having served as a judge, expressed an interest in running for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1934, butpolitical bossTom Pendergast had already selected another candidate for that race. After four other potential candidates had declined to run, Pendergast ultimately approached Truman to discuss a possible run for the United States Senate, to Truman's surprise. Truman, with backing from Pendergast, entered the Senate race. Truman said he would not, if elected, dictate to anyone,[clarification needed] to the dismay of anti-Pendergast U.S. SenatorBennett Champ Clark.[4]
Truman waged a statewide campaign and eventually won the largely three-way Democratic primary on August 7, 1934, by a significant margin, defeating U.S. RepresentativesJohn Cochran andJacob Milligan.[2]

| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Harry S. Truman | 276,850 | 41.42% | |
| Democratic | John J. Cochran | 236,257 | 35.35% | |
| Democratic | Jacob L. Milligan | 147,631 | 22.09% | |
| Democratic | James L. Cleveland | 7,691 | 1.15% | |
| Total votes | 668,429 | 100 | ||
Nearly half of Truman's vote (137,529) came from Jackson County alone, where he received 92.8%. Likewise, Cochran received over half of his overall vote (121,048) from St. Louis and St. Louis County, where he led with 90.5% and 77.9%, respectively.[5]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Harry S. Truman | 787,110 | 59.55% | |
| Republican | Roscoe C. Patterson (incumbent) | 524,954 | 39.71% | |
| Socialist | W.C. Meyer | 9,010 | 0.68% | |
| Communist | Frank Brown | 418 | 0.03% | |
| Socialist Labor | William Wesley Cox | 384 | 0.03% | |
| Total votes | 1,321,876 | 100.00% | ||
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