1980 United States Senate election in California

The 1980 United States Senate election in California took place on November 4, 1980. Incumbent Democrat U.S. Senator Alan Cranston easily won re-election to a third term, even as the state's former Republican governor, Ronald Reagan, won a landslide victory in the concurrent presidential election, and a target of the National Conservative Political Action Committee.

were held on June 3, 1980.

• Alan Cranston, incumbent United States Senator
• Richard Morgan
• David Rees
• Frank L. Thomas

Democratic primary results^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Alan Cranston (incumbent)	2,608,746	79.91%
	Democratic	Richard Morgan	350,394	10.73%
	Democratic	Frank L. Thomas	195,351	5.98%
	Democratic	David Rees	110,125	3.37%
	Independent	Write-ins	26	0.00%
Total votes			3,264,642	100.00

• Paul Gann, political activist
• Rayburn Hanzlik, former Nixon and Ford staffer
• Brian Hyndman
• John G. Schmitz, State Senator and American Independent Party candidate for President in 1972
• Philip Schwartz
• Sam Yorty, former Mayor of Los Angeles, and Democratic nominee in 1954
• James A. Ware, nominee for Controller in 1978

Republican primary results^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Paul Gann	934,433	40.00%
	Republican	Sam Yorty	668,583	28.62%
	Republican	John G. Schmitz	442,839	18.96%
	Republican	James A. Ware	95,155	4.07%
	Republican	Rayburn Hanzlik	76,268	3.27%
	Republican	Philip Schwartz	68,790	2.95%
	Republican	Brian Hyndman	50,122	2.15%
Total votes			2,336,190	100.00

1980 United States Senate election, California^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Alan Cranston (incumbent)	4,705,399	56.51%
	Republican	Paul Gann	3,093,426	37.15%
	Libertarian	David Bergland	202,481	2.43%
	Peace and Freedom	David Wald	196,354	2.36%
	American Independent	James C. Griffin	129,648	1.56%
	Democratic hold

• 1980 United States Senate elections