# 1972 United States Senate election in North Carolina

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vte :
The North Carolina United States Senate election of 1972 was held on 7 November 1972 as part of the nationwide elections to the Senate, and coinciding with the 1972 presidential election. The general election was fought between the Republican nominee Jesse Helms and the Democratic nominee Rep. Nick Galifianakis. Helms won the election, becoming the first Republican to win a Senate seat in North Carolina since 1897, and the first to hold this seat since 1871.
Three-term Representative Nick Galifianakis defeated two-term incumbent Senator B. Everett Jordan in the second ballot in the Democratic primary. Galifianakis was seen as an anti-establishment liberal in North Carolina, although an opponent of busing. This was the first time ever that a Republican won a full term to this Senate seat in North Carolina.

## Democratic primary
### Candidates

* J. R. Brown
* Nick Galifianakis, U.S. Representative from Durham
* Eugene Grace
* B. Everett Jordan, incumbent Senator since 1958
22% of the voting age population participated in the Democratic primary.

### Results

1972 Democratic Senate primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Nick Galifianakis | 377,993 | 49.25% |
| | Democratic | B. Everett Jordan (incumbent) | 340,391 | 44.35% |
| | Democratic | J. R. Brown | 27,009 | 3.52% |
| | Democratic | Eugene Grace | 22,156 | 2.89% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 767,549 | 100.00% |

### Runoff

1972 Democratic Senate runoff :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Nick Galifianakis | 338,558 | 55.82% | 6.57 |
| | Democratic | B. Everett Jordan (incumbent) | 267,997 | 44.18% | 0.17 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 606,555 | 100.00% | |

## Republican primary
### Candidates

* William Booe, former member of the Charlotte School Board
* Jesse Helms, WRAL-TV executive and commentator and former Democratic member of the Raleigh City Council
* James Johnson, State Representative from Greensboro
4.4% of the voting age population participated in the Republican primary.

### Results

1972 Republican Senate primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Jesse Helms | 92,496 | 60.13% |
| | Republican | James Johnson | 45,303 | 29.45% |
| | Republican | William Booe | 16,032 | 10.42% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 153,831 | 100.00% |

## General election
### Results

1972 U.S. Senate election in North Carolina :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Jesse Helms | 795,247 | 54.01% | 9.61 |
| | Democratic | Nick Galifianakis | 677,293 | 45.99% | 9.60 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,472,540 | 100.00% | |