1914 United States Senate elections

Four Republicans and three Democrats retired instead of seeking re-election. One Democrat retired instead of seeking election to finish the unexpired term.

Two Republicans sought re-election but lost in the primary election.

One Democrat died on August 8, 1913, and his seat remained vacant until a May 11, 1914 special election.

One Democrat died during the 64th Congress and was replaced by a Democratic appointee.

In these special elections, the winners were seated once elected and qualified; ordered by election date.

In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning March 4, 1915; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

Nineteen races had a margin of victory under 10%:

Democrat Joseph F. Johnston died August 8, 1913. Democrat Henry D. Clayton was appointed August 12, 1913, but his appointment was challenged and withdrawn. Democrat Franklin P. Glass was appointed November 17, 1913, but the Senate refused to seat him.^[36]

Alabama special election

← 1907 May 11, 1914 1914 →

Nominee Francis S. White Party Democratic Popular vote 102,326 Percentage 99.94%

U.S. senator before election Joseph F. Johnston Democratic Elected U.S. senator Francis S. White Democratic

Democrat Francis S. White was elected May 11, 1914, to finish the current term that would end in 1915.

Alabama election

← 1914 (special) 1920 →

Nominee Oscar Underwood Alex C. Birch Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 163,338 12,320 Percentage 90.20% 6.80%

County results Underwood:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Birch:      40–50%      60–70% Longshore:      50–60%

U.S. senator before election Francis S. White Democratic Elected U.S. senator Oscar Underwood Democratic

After White retired, House Majority Leader Oscar Underwood was elected to a new term.

Arizona election

← 1912 1920 →

Nominee Marcus A. Smith Don Lorenzo Hubbell Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 25,800 9,183 Percentage 53.23% 18.95%   Nominee Eugene W. Chafin Bert Davis Party Prohibition Socialist Popular vote 7,293 3,582 Percentage 15.05% 7.39%   Nominee J. Bernard Nelson Party Progressive Popular vote 2,608 Percentage 5.38%

County results Smith:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. senator before election Marcus A. Smith Democratic Elected U.S. senator Marcus A. Smith Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Marcus A. Smith was elected in 1912 with 50% of the vote and sought re-election. Although he easily defeated his primary challenger, he faced a large field of candidates in the general election. State Senator and trader Don Lorenzo Hubbell was the Republican nominee. Third-party candidates included Eugene W. Chafin of the Prohibition Party, who ran for president under the party's nomination, as well as Socialist Bert Davis and Progressive J. Bernard Nelson.

Smith received over half of the vote, defeating each candidate by a wide margin. He was elected to his second term.

California election

← 1909 1920 →

Nominee James Duval Phelan Francis J. Heney Party Democratic Progressive Popular vote 279,896 255,232 Percentage 31.59% 28.81%   Nominee Joseph R. Knowland Ernest Untermann Party Republican Socialist Popular vote 254,159 56,805 Percentage 28.69% 6.41%

County results Phelan:      <40%      40-50%      50-60% Heney:      <40% Knowland:      <40%      40-50%

U.S. senator before election George Clement Perkins Republican Elected U.S. senator James Duval Phelan Democratic

Incumbent Republican George Clement Perkins was first elected in an 1895 special election and was re-elected for three more terms. He did not seek re-election.

U.S. Representative Joseph R. Knowland was the Republican nominee for this seat in 1914. He was challenged by the Democratic nominee, former mayor of San Francisco James Duval Phelan, and the Progressive nominee Francis J. Heney, the former attorney general of the Arizona Territory.

Phelan defeated Heney and Knowland by slim margins and less than a third of the vote.

Florida election

← 1909 (special) 1920 →

Nominee Duncan U. Fletcher Party Democratic Popular vote 22,761 Percentage 100.00%

U.S. senator before election Duncan U. Fletcher Democratic Elected U.S. senator Duncan U. Fletcher Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Duncan Fletcher was elected in a special election after being appointed when William Hall Milton retired after a year in office. He sought re-election to a full term, facing competition only in the primary.

There were two elections due to the February 14, 1914, death of Democrat Augustus Octavius Bacon. It was the first time that both of Georgia's Senate seats have been up for election at the same time.

Georgia special election

← 1913 1918 →

Nominee Thomas W. Hardwick Rufe G. Hutchens Party Democratic Progressive Popular vote 62,589 28,169 Percentage 68.96% 31.04%

County results Hardwick:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Hutchens:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% No Vote:

U.S. senator before election William S. West Democratic Elected U.S. senator Thomas W. Hardwick Democratic

Democrat William West was appointed to continue the term pending a special election, in which he was not a candidate.

Democrat Thomas W. Hardwick was elected November 3, 1914, to finish the term that would end in 1919 and served until losing renomination in 1918.

Georgia election

← 1911 (special) 1920 →

Nominee M. Hoke Smith C. W. McClure Party Democratic Progressive Popular vote 61,789 28,441 Percentage 68.48% 31.52%

County results Smith:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% McClure:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% No Vote:

U.S. senator before election M. Hoke Smith Democratic Elected U.S. senator M. Hoke Smith Democratic

Democrat M. Hoke Smith, who had first won in a 1911 special election, was re-elected and would serve until his 1920 renomination loss.

There were 2 elections to the same seat due to the May 23, 1914, death of one-term Republican William O. Bradley.

Kentucky special election

← 1908 1914 →

Nominee Johnson N. Camden Jr. William Marshall Bullitt Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 177,797 133,139 Percentage 53.99% 40.43%

County results Camden:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Bullitt:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%

U.S. senator before election Johnson N. Camden Jr. Democratic Elected U.S. senator Johnson N. Camden Jr. Democratic

Democrat Johnson N. Camden was appointed June 16, 1914, to continue Bradley's term, pending a special election. He was challenged by U.S. Solicitor General William Marshall Bullitt.

Camden was elected in November to finish the term ending 1915.

Kentucky election

← 1914 (special) 1920 →

Nominee John C. W. Beckham Augustus E. Willson Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 176,605 144,758 Percentage 51.89% 42.53%

County results Beckham:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Willson:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%

U.S. senator before election Johnson N. Camden Jr. Democratic Elected U.S. senator John C. W. Beckham Democratic

Democratic appointee Johnson N. Camden was not a candidate for the next term, instead returning to agricultural activities on a farm.

In this race, two former governors of Kentucky fought for the seat. The Democratic nominee was John C. W. Beckham, who was sworn in after the assassination of William Goebel in 1900. The Republican nominee was Augustus E. Willson, who flipped the seat in 1907 after Beckham's term ended.

Beckham won the election, and would continue to serve until his re-election loss.

Louisiana election

← 1910 (special) 1918 (special) →

Nominee Robert F. Broussard Party Democratic

U.S. senator before election John Thornton Democratic Elected U.S. senator Robert F. Broussard Democratic

Senator Robert F. Broussard had already been elected on May 21, 1912, indirectly by the state legislature.

Ohio election

← 1909 1920 →

Nominee Warren G. Harding Timothy S. Hogan Arthur L. Garford Party Republican Democratic Progressive Popular vote 526,115 423,742 67,509 Percentage 49.16% 39.60% 6.31%

County results Harding:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Hogan:      40–50%      50–60%

U.S. senator before election Theodore E. Burton Republican Elected U.S. senator Warren G. Harding Republican

Republican nominee Warren G. Harding, future President of the United States, defeated Democratic nominee Timothy S. Hogan to succeed retiring incumbent Republican Senator Theodore E. Burton.^[38]

Initially, Harding was not interested in running for U.S. Senate, due to the divisive remnants of the 1912 elections between the conservative and progressive factions of the Republican party. Harry Daugherty, an Ohio political boss, was interested in running for the seat himself upon learning of incumbent Senator Theodore Burton's plans to retire upon the expiration of his term, but party leaders advised him not to run. Instead, Daugherty unsuccessfully attempted to stage a draft movement to convince Harding to run for the seat. After the death of Amos Kling, the father of Harding's wife Florence, she encouraged her husband to run. The precise reasoning for this is unknown, but some in Marion, the Hardings' home town, believe that Harding had agreed not to seek higher office as part of a reuniting "truce" between Florence and her father, or that Kling had convinced Harding that it would behoove him to further his business rather than run for public office.^[39]

Although Daugherty claimed it was him who had convinced Harding to run for the Senate, Harding's friend and attorney Hoke Donithen, who eventually became Harding's campaign manager, may have played a role in his decision to run. Retiring Senator Theodore Burton also claimed credit, saying to his biographer that Daugherty did not agree to throw his support behind Harding until after learning he had backed him.^[39]

The Republican primary was a three-way contest between Harding, former U.S. Senator and ex-mentor Joseph B. Foraker^[40] and Ralph Cole. Rather than antagonizing his opponents, Harding notably tried to keep and make friends within the Republican party, to the frustration of those running against him. Ralph Cole, in his frustration, said, "If he is not going to fight someone, why did he enter the contest?"^[39] Harding eventually defeated both of his opponents in the primary, garnering 88,540 votes. Foraker finished in second with 76,817 votes, ahead of Cole with 52,237.^[39]

In the general election campaign, Harding faced Democratic nominee Timothy Hogan and Progressive candidate Arthur Garford. Hogan was subject to anti-Catholic sentiment among voters, which Harding himself did not exhibit during the course of the election. Harding's supporters accused Hogan of wanting to "deliver Ohio to the Pope."^[41] Harding downplayed the issue of World War I, despite the fact that the election took place just after the outbreak of the war, due to the high German immigrant population. Harding ultimately won the election and subsequently became the first United States Senator from Ohio to be popularly elected, following the passage of the 17th Amendment to the Constitution.^[40]

Harding's victory in his bid for the Senate seat raised speculation that he would seek higher office, specifically the Presidency, although Harding himself did not show any interest in doing so at the time. He told family and friends after being elected to the Senate that he would return to his previous career in newspaper publishing at The Marion Daily Star after serving in the Senate.^[39]