View source for 1974 United States Senate election in South Carolina

{{Short description|none}} <!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] -->
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox election
| election_name = 1974 United States Senate election in South Carolina
| country = South Carolina
| type = presidential
| ongoing = no
| previous_election = 1968 United States Senate election in South Carolina
| previous_year = 1968
| next_election = 1980 United States Senate election in South Carolina
| next_year = 1980
| election_date = November 5, 1974
| image_size = 125x136px
| image1 = Ernest Hollings 91st Congress.jpg
| nominee1 = '''[[Fritz Hollings|Ernest Hollings]]'''
| party1 = Democratic Party (United States)
| popular_vote1 = '''355,107'''
| percentage1 = '''69.44%'''
| image2 = No_image.svg
| nominee2 = Gwen Bush
| party2 = Republican Party (United States)
| popular_vote2 = 146,649
| percentage2 = 28.68%
| map_image = 1974 United States Senate election in South Carolina results map by county.svg
| map_size = 250px
| map_caption = County results<br />'''Hollings''': {{legend0|#7996e2|50–60%}} {{legend0|#6674de|60–70%}} {{legend0|#584cde|70–80%}} {{legend0|#3933e5|80–90%}}
| title = U.S. Senator
| before_election = [[Ernest Hollings]]
| before_party = Democratic Party (United States)
| after_election = [[Ernest Hollings]]
| after_party = Democratic Party (United States)
}}
{{ElectionsSC}}
The '''1974 South Carolina United States Senate election''' was held on November 5, 1974, to select the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senator]] from the state of [[South Carolina]].  Incumbent [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] Senator [[Ernest Hollings|Fritz Hollings]] easily defeated [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] challenger Gwen Bush to win his third (his second full) term.
==Primaries==
Both Fritz Hollings and Gwen Bush faced no opposition in their party's primaries which allowed both candidates to concentrate solely on the general election.
==General election campaign==
The [[Watergate scandal]] caused the Republicans to perform poorly nationwide in 1974 and Gwen Bush was little more than a sacrificial lamb.  The main focus of the voters in South Carolina was on the competitive [[South Carolina gubernatorial election, 1974|gubernatorial contest]] and Fritz Hollings easily cruised to a comfortable re-election.
==General election results==
{{Election box begin | title=South Carolina U.S. Senate Election, 1974}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link
|party      = Democratic Party (United States)
|candidate  = [[Ernest Hollings|Fritz Hollings]] (incumbent)
|votes      = 355,107
|percentage = 69.44%
|change     = +7.55%
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|party=Republican Party (United States)|candidate=Gwen Bush|votes=146,649|percentage=28.68%|change=-9.43%}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|party=Independent (United States)|candidate=Harold Hough|votes=9,624|percentage=1.88%|change=N/A}}
{{Election box majority|votes=208,458|percentage=40.76%|change=+16.98%}}
{{Election box turnout|votes=511,380|percentage=51.3% <!--997808 registered voters-->|change=-25.2%}}
|-
| {{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
| colspan=5 |[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] '''hold'''
|-
{{Election box end}}
==See also==
*[[List of United States senators from South Carolina]]
*[[United States Senate elections, 1974 and 1975]]
*[[United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 1974]]
*[[South Carolina gubernatorial election, 1974]]
==References==
*{{cite book | last = State Election Commission | title = Report of the South Carolina State Election Commission | year = 1975 | publisher = State Election Commission | location = Columbia, SC | pages = 37}}
{{South Carolina elections}}
{{United States elections, 1974}}
[[Category:1974 United States Senate elections|South Carolina]]
[[Category:United States Senate elections in South Carolina|1974]]
[[Category:1974 South Carolina elections]]