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IL US Senate- R Primary

RACE DETAILS

Parents

> United States > Illinois > Senate Class II

Office

Senate

Type

Primary Election

Filing Deadline

March 01, 1984 - 12:00pm

Polls Open

March 20, 1984 - 06:00am

Polls Close

March 20, 1984 - 11:00pm

Term Start

January 03, 1985 - 12:00pm

Term End

January 03, 1991 - 12:00pm

Contributor

Barack O-blame-a

Last Modified

RBH March 09, 2023 03:35pm

Data Sources

IL Board of Elections Vote Total Book Primary 1984 P. 21

Description

Senator Percy attracted a notable primary opponent in 1984. The Illinois primary was the first in the nation that year, and it was one of a very few with a significant primary challenge against an incumbent Republican Senator.

Percy's reputation as a moderate Republican played into the decision of U.S. Rep. Thomas Corcoran to oppose him. As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Percy had worked with Arab leaders in the Middle East to try to improve the lot of the Palestinian people. Sen Percy was also a leader of the effort to sell AWAC planes to Saudi Arabia. Percy was also a supporter of the Roe vs. Wade decision.

Corcoran's campaign consisted of three criticisms of Percy. His first attack was on the issue of Percy's contacts with Arab leaders. Corcoran charged Percy with being "Israel's most powerful adversary in the Senate" in an effort to gain the support of Jewish Republicans. Second, the National Pro-Life PAC mailed a flyer which showed that on issues surrounding abortion, Percy voted more with Ted Kennedy than he did with Corcoran or most Republicans. Third, near the end of the primary campaign, Corcoran charged Percy with only supporting Pres. Reagan's intitiatives when it was politically convenient.

Percy worked hard in early 1984 to defeat Corcoran. He would not repeat his 1978 re-election campaign, in which his political advisors used polls to convince him that he was headed for an easy victory, and his paucity of serious campaigning nearly cost him the seat. His campaign theme was "the Illinois Advantage," specifically his seniority in the Senate (where he had been serving since 1967).

Just before primary day, Percy's advisors were worried. The Democratic presidential primary was held the same day as the state primary, and Percy's campaign team worried that moderate Republicans would vote in the Democratic presidential primary and thereby be excluded from the Republican U.S. Senate race. That would enhance the influence of Corcoran's conservative base.

Percy spent $2 million in his primary race, which was twice the $1 million that Corcoran spent.

On primary day, Percy defeated Corcoran by twenty percentage points and proceeded confidently into the fall election campaign against his Democratic opponent, Paul Simon.

New York Times 1/3, 2/24, 3/19, 3/21, and 5/9/1984