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 County results Specter: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Flaherty: 40–50% 50–60% 60-70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The1980 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 4, 1980. Incumbent Republican U.S. SenatorRichard Schweiker decided to retire, instead of seeking a third term.
Republican nomineeArlen Specter won the open seat, defeating Democratic nomineePeter F. Flaherty.
As of 2023, this 1980 election was the last timePhiladelphia voted for a Republican statewide candidate. This is also the last Senate election in whichButler County,Clarion County,Venango County, andJefferson County voted Democratic.
Arlen Specter, formerly a member of the Democratic Party, had served as legal counsel to theWarren Commission, which investigated the 1963 assassination of PresidentJohn F. Kennedy, after which he becameDistrict Attorney ofPhiladelphia.
After Specter was defeated in a 1967 run forMayor of Philadelphia, he was then also defeated in his bid for a third term as district attorney. He then ran in the Republican primary in the1976 Senate election, but was defeated byJohn Heinz and also ran in the1978 gubernatorial election, but was defeated byDick Thornburgh in the primary.
Shortly after Specter opened a law practice inAtlantic City, New Jersey, incumbent Republican U.S. SenatorRichard Schweiker unexpectedly announced his decision not to seek re-election to his seat. Specter, believing his reputation as a politicalmoderate would help him in the general election, decided to run.
During the Republican primary, Specter faced state senatorEdward Howard, as well as Delaware County councilmanBud Haabestad, who was endorsed by Schweiker, then-governor Thornburgh and John Heinz.[1]
Specter ultimately defeated Haabestad, his most prominent challenger, by approximately 37,000 votes.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Arlen Specter | 419,372 | 36.40 | |
| Republican | Bud Haabestad | 382,281 | 33.18 | |
| Republican | Edward L. Howard | 148,200 | 12.86 | |
| Republican | Norman W. Bertasavage | 52,408 | 4.55 | |
| Republican | Andrew J. Watson | 43,992 | 3.82 | |
| Republican | Warren R. Williams | 38,153 | 3.31 | |
| Republican | Lewis C. Richards | 36,982 | 3.21 | |
| Republican | Francis Worley | 30,660 | 2.66 | |
During the Democratic primary, former Pittsburgh mayorPeter Flaherty contended with State RepresentativeJoseph Rhodes, Jr., former U.S. RepresentativeEdward Mezvinsky, State SenatorH. Craig Lewis and Dean of Temple University Law SchoolPeter J. Liacouras.[1]
Flaherty's name recognition enabled him to defeat his primary opponents, winning every county and thus winning the Democratic nomination.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Pete Flaherty | 771,119 | 53.23 | |
| Democratic | Joseph Rhodes Jr. | 179,107 | 12.36 | |
| Democratic | Peter J. Liacouras | 116,975 | 8.08 | |
| Democratic | C. Delores Tucker | 107,483 | 7.42 | |
| Democratic | Edward Mezvinsky | 100,841 | 6.96 | |
| Democratic | Tom Anderson | 89,656 | 6.19 | |
| Democratic | H. Craig Lewis | 69,701 | 4.81 | |
| Democratic | John J. Logue | 13,752 | 0.95 | |
Flaherty employed a general election strategy he had used in two previous statewide office campaigns: win by a wide margin in the southwestern part of the state and narrowly win Philadelphia. He also hoped to carry several swing towns, based on his support from severallabor unions.
Specter hoped to carry his hometown of Philadelphia, despite the Democrats' 7-2 voter registration advantage there. To this end, Specter sought endorsements among city Democratic leadership, including future mayorJohn F. Street. Specter hoped that, with wins in suburban areas and the heavily Republican central portion of the state in addition to winning Philadelphia, he would be able to win the election. Specter distanced himself from Governor Dick Thornburgh, who had become unpopular due to his proposals to decreasewelfare program spending.[1]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Arlen Specter | 2,230,404 | 50.48% | ||
| Democratic | Peter F. Flaherty | 2,122,391 | 48.04% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Linda Mohrbacher | 27,229 | 0.62% | ||
| Libertarian | David K. Walter | 18,595 | 0.42% | ||
| Consumer | Lee Frissell | 16,089 | 0.36% | ||
| Communist | Frank Kinces | 3,334 | 0.08% | ||
| Majority | 108,013 | 2.44% | |||
| Total votes | 4,418,042 | 100.00% | |||
| Republicanhold | Swing | ||||
In the end, Specter defeated Flaherty by approximately 108,000 votes, carrying Philadelphia and its suburbs as well as the central and northeastern portions of the state. Flaherty performed strongest in the western portion of the state, includingCambria,Clarion,Erie andMercer counties.[1]
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