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1986 United States Senate election in California 
Summary
The 1986 United States Senate election in California took place on November 4, 1986. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Alan Cranston narrowly won re-election to a fourth and final term over Republican U.S. Congressman Ed Zschau. This was the last time where both major party nominees for the Class 3 Senate seat in California were men until 2022.
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 County results Cranston: 40-50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Zschau: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Democratic primary edit
Candidates edit
- John Hancock Abbott, perennial candidate
- Robert John Banuelos, resident of Costa Mesa
- Alan Cranston, incumbent Senator
- Charles Greene
- Brian Lantz, candidate for Mayor of San Francisco in 1983
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan Cranston (incumbent) | 1,807,244 | 80.71% | |
| Democratic | Charles Greene | 165,594 | 7.40% | |
| Democratic | John Hancock Abbott | 124,218 | 5.55% | |
| Democratic | Robert John Banuelos | 77,286 | 3.45% | |
| Democratic | Brian Lantz | 64,907 | 2.90% | |
| Total votes | 2,239,249 | 100.00% | ||
Republican primary edit
Candidates edit
- William B. Allen, professor at Harvey Mudd College and member of the National Council on the Humanities
- Michael D. Antonovich, Los Angeles County Supervisor and former State Assemblyman
- Eldridge Cleaver, author and former Black Panther
- Edward M. Davis, State Senator and former chief of the Los Angeles Police Department
- Bobbi Fiedler, U.S. Representative from Encino
- Bruce Herschensohn, political commentator for KABC-TV in Los Angeles
- Joe Knowland, actor, publisher of The Oakland Tribune and son of former Senator William Knowland
- Art Laffer, economic advisor to President Ronald Reagan
- George Montgomery
- Robert W. Naylor, State Assemblyman from Menlo Park
- William H. Pemberton, candidate for Senate in 1982
- John W. Spring
- Ed Zschau, U.S. Representative from Los Altos
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ed Zschau | 737,384 | 37.12% | |
| Republican | Bruce Herschensohn | 587,852 | 29.59% | |
| Republican | Michael D. Antonovich | 180,010 | 9.06% | |
| Republican | Bobbi Fiedler | 143,032 | 7.20% | |
| Republican | Edward M. Davis | 130,309 | 6.56% | |
| Republican | Robert W. Naylor | 60,820 | 3.06% | |
| Republican | Art Laffer | 47,288 | 2.38% | |
| Republican | Joe Knowland | 35,987 | 1.81% | |
| Republican | Eldridge Cleaver | 23,512 | 1.17% | |
| Republican | George Montgomery | 16,374 | 0.82% | |
| Republican | William B. Allen | 12,990 | 0.65% | |
| Republican | William H. Pemberton | 6,698 | 0.34% | |
| Republican | John W. Spring | 4,478 | 0.23% | |
| Total votes | 1,986,374 | 100.00% | ||
Peace and Freedom primary edit
Candidates edit
- Lenni Brenner, Trotskyist anti-war activist and writer
- Paul Kangas, private investigator and perennial candidate
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peace and Freedom | Paul Kangas | 2,495 | 51.03% | |
| Peace and Freedom | Lenni Brenner | 2,394 | 48.97% | |
| Total votes | 4,889 | 100.00% | ||
General election edit
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alan Cranston (incumbent) | 3,646,672 | 49.29% | ||
| Republican | Ed Zschau | 3,541,804 | 47.87% | ||
| American Independent | Edward B Vallen | 109,916 | 1.49% | ||
| Libertarian | Breck McKinley | 66,261 | 0.90% | ||
| Peace and Freedom | Paul Kangas | 33,869 | 0.46% | ||
| Democratic hold | |||||