The 1980 United States Senate election in Illinois was held on November 4, 1980. Incumbent Democrat U.S. Senator Adlai Stevenson III decided to retire. Democrat Alan J. Dixon won the open seat.
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| Turnout | 73.51% | ||||||||||||||||
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 County results Dixon: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% O'Neal: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Election information
The primaries and general elections coincided with those for other federal offices (President and House), as well as those for state offices.[1][2]
Background
Incumbent Democrat Adlai Stevenson III opted not to seek reelection to a third-term. This was the first open-race for this senate seat since 1938.
Turnout
Turnout in the primary elections was 35.36%, with a total of 2,026,814 votes cast.[1][3]
Turnout during the general election was 73.51%, with 4,579,933 votes cast.[2][3]
Democratic primary
Alan J. Dixon overwhelmingly won the Democratic primary.
Candidates
- Alan J. Dixon, Illinois Secretary of State
- Anthony R. Martin-Trigona, candidate for U.S. Senator in 1978
- Alex Seith, Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator in 1978
- Robert Ash "Bob" Wallace
- Dakin Williams, prosecutor, candidate for U.S. Senator in 1972 and 1974, candidate for Illinois Governor in 1978[4][5]
Campaign
Alex Seith, who had won the Democratic nomination for Senator two years earlier, almost winning the 1978 race in what would have been a major upset, laid hopes of capturing the nomination again.
Anthony R. Martin-Trigona, a political activist who had unsuccessfully sought the nomination for senate in 1978, again ran for the nomination.
Robert Ash "Bob" Wallace made use of his friendship with boxer Muhammad Ali, featuring him in campaign ads and having him make campaign appearances.[6][7]
Dakin Williams was a prosecutor, and was the younger brother of famous playwright Tennessee Williams.[4] He had been a candidate for the Democratic nomination of Illinois' other US Senate seat in 1972, and had unsuccessfully sought the nomination for this seat in 1974. He had also been a candidate for governor in 1978.[5]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan J. Dixon | 671,746 | 66.88 | |
| Democratic | Alex Seith | 190,339 | 18.95 | |
| Democratic | Robert Ash "Bob" Wallace | 64,037 | 6.38 | |
| Democratic | Anthony R. Martin-Trigona | 39,711 | 3.95 | |
| Democratic | Dankin Williams | 38,388 | 3.82 | |
| Write-in | Others | 153 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 1,004,374 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Richard E. Carver, Mayor of Peoria, Illinois
- Dave O'Neal, Lieutenant Governor of Illinois
- William J. Scott, Illinois Attorney General
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | David C. O'Neal | 424,634 | 41.53 | |
| Republican | William J. Scott | 352,138 | 34.44 | |
| Republican | Dick Carver | 245,668 | 24.03 | |
| Write-in | Others | 141 | 0.00 | |
| Total votes | 1,022,440 | 100 | ||
General election
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan J. Dixon | 2,565,302 | 56.01% | |
| Republican | David C. O'Neal | 1,946,296 | 42.50% | |
| Libertarian | Bruce Green | 29,328 | 0.64% | |
| Independent | Sidney Lens | 19,213 | 0.42% | |
| Communist | Charles F. Wilson | 11,453 | 0.25% | |
| Workers World | Michael Soriano | 5,626 | 0.12% | |
| Socialist Workers | Burton Lee Artz | 2,715 | 0.06% | |
| Write-in | Others | 96 | 0.00% | |
| Total votes | 4,579,933 | 100 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||