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 County results Stone: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Eckerd: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Grady: 40–50% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The1974 United States Senate election in Florida was held on November 5, 1974. IncumbentSenatorEdward Gurney, aRepublican, declined to seek a second term after being indicted for taking bribes in return for hisinfluence with theFederal Housing Administration. The primary for the Republican nomination pittedEckerd drug store ownerJack Eckerd againstFlorida Public Service CommissionerPaula Hawkins. Eckerd won handily, receiving approximately 67.5% of the vote. The Democratic primary, however, was a crowded field with eleven candidates vying for the nomination. Because no candidate received a majority of the votes,U.S. RepresentativeBill Gunter andSecretary of State of FloridaRichard Stone advanced to a run-off election. Stone won by a small margin of 1.68%.
Thus, Eckerd and Stone faced off in the general election. John Grady, a family physician and member ofGeorge Wallace'sAmerican Independent Party, performed very well for a third-party candidate. On election day, Stone received 43.38% of the vote, Eckerd garnered 40.91% of the vote, and Grady acquired 15.7% of the vote. Stone served only one term in the Senate and would bedefeated by Gunter in the Democratic primary in 1980.
 | This Template that shows Democratic Party Primary Election results are disputed, it doesn't show some candidates and accurate vote shares:https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=337538'sfactual accuracy isdisputed. Relevant discussion may be found on thetalk page. Please help to ensure that disputed statements arereliably sourced.(July 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The Democratic primary consisted of a large field of 11 candidates.[1] 13.6% of the voting age population participated in the Democratic primary.[2]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Richard Stone | 236,185 | 29.80% | |
| Democratic | Bill Gunter | 157,301 | 19.85% | |
| Democratic | Richard A. Pettigrew | 146,728 | 18.51% | |
| Democratic | Mallory Horne | 90,684 | 11.44% | |
| Democratic | Glenn W. Turner | 51,326 | 6.48% | |
| Democratic | George Balmer | 24,408 | 3.08% | |
| Democratic | Burton Young | 23,199 | 2.93% | |
| Democratic | Bob Brewster | 19,913 | 2.51% | |
| Democratic | David B. Higginbottom | 17,401 | 1.64% | |
| Democratic | Duaine E. Macon | 14,961 | 1.89% | |
| Total votes | 782,106 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Richard Stone | 321,683 | 50.84% | |
| Democratic | Bill Gunter | 311,044 | 49.16% | |
| Total votes | 632,727 | 100.00% | ||
The Republican primary was a smaller affair than its Democratic counterpart with two candidates.[1] 4.7% of the voting age population participated in the Republican primary.[2]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jack Eckerd | 186,897 | 67.49% | |
| Republican | Paula Hawkins | 90,049 | 32.52% | |
| Total votes | 276,946 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Richard Stone | 781,031 | 43.38% | |
| Republican | Jack Eckerd | 736,674 | 40.91% | |
| American Independent | John Grady | 282,659 | 15.70% | |
| Independent | Jim Fair | 117 | 0.01% | |
| Independent | Henry J. Matthew | 35 | 0.00% | |
| Independent | Hortense L. Arvan | 13 | 0.00% | |
| Independent | Timothy L. "Tim" Adams | 10 | 0.00% | |
| Majority | 44,357 | 3.32% | ||
| Turnout | 1,800,539 | |||
| Democraticgain fromRepublican | ||||
An "Independent" Democrat, on leave from Florida Atlantic University, Justin has had previous governmental experience as a member of the Arizona state Legislature.
But it was Dr. John Grady, a 50-year-old physician and three-time mayor of the sugar belt town of Belle Glade, who played the role of political spoiler in Florida.
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