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 County results Cranston: 40-50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Gann: 40–50% 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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The1980 United States Senate election in California took place on November 4, 1980. Incumbent Democrat U.S. SenatorAlan Cranston easily won re-election to a third term, even as the state's former Republican governor,Ronald Reagan, won a landslide victory in theconcurrent presidential election, and a target of theNational Conservative Political Action Committee.
Primary elections were held on June 3, 1980.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan Cranston (incumbent) | 2,608,746 | 79.91% | |
| Democratic | Richard Morgan | 350,394 | 10.73% | |
| Democratic | Frank L. Thomas | 195,351 | 5.98% | |
| Democratic | David Rees | 110,125 | 3.37% | |
| Independent | Write-ins | 26 | 0.00% | |
| Total votes | 3,264,642 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Paul Gann | 934,433 | 40.00% | |
| Republican | Sam Yorty | 668,583 | 28.62% | |
| Republican | John G. Schmitz | 442,839 | 18.96% | |
| Republican | James A. Ware | 95,155 | 4.07% | |
| Republican | Rayburn Hanzlik | 76,268 | 3.27% | |
| Republican | Philip Schwartz | 68,790 | 2.95% | |
| Republican | Brian Hyndman | 50,122 | 2.15% | |
| Total votes | 2,336,190 | 100.00 | ||
Shift by county
Trend by county| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan Cranston (incumbent) | 4,705,399 | 56.51% | ||
| Republican | Paul Gann | 3,093,426 | 37.15% | ||
| Libertarian | David Bergland | 202,481 | 2.43% | ||
| Peace and Freedom | David Wald | 196,354 | 2.36% | ||
| American Independent | James C. Griffin | 129,648 | 1.56% | ||
| Democratichold | |||||
