Highest % any Senator got running for their 1st term?

[DWPerry]

These include those over 60%, or under 50%:

(1986)
Mikulski, MD 60.69%
McCian, AZ 60.45%
Reid, NV 49.996% - NOTA 3.62%, Libertarian 1.87%
Conrad, ND 49.80% - Ind 1.13%

(1988)
Jeffords, VT 68.11% - as Republican
Lieberman, CT 49.76% - Libertarian 0.90%, New Alliance 0.30%

(1990)
Craig, ID 61.29%

(1992)
Boxer, CA 47.90% - American Independent 3.45%, Peace&Freedom 3.45%, 
                            Libertarian 2.18%
Gregg, NH 48.17% - Libertarian 3.52%, Independents 1.80% and  0.92%,
                                Natural Law 0.25%

(1993)
Hutchison, TX 67.34% - Special runoff.

(1994)
Snowe, ME  60.26%
Santorum, PA  49.41% Patriot 1.99%, Libertarian 1.68%.

It should be noted that not all of these candidates won a seat from an incumbent, McCain for example won an open-seat, Republican Barry Goldwater had retired.

[DWPerry]

Good work as usual, jimrtex. Do you know Brownback's results in 1996? (Brownback and Roberts were both originally elected in 1996, but the Atlas only has the data for Roberts.)

Anyway, it looks like Obama still has the highest percentage of the 100 Senators running for their first term.

Brownback had 53.91%.  His was a special election to fill the Dole seat - may be why the Atlas doesn't have it.

I've asked Dave about this race, as well as the two Oregon races in 1996. He said he doesn't currently have any way to display and differentiate two Senate races in one state in the same year, although he's working on it.

The "other election" in Oregon in 1996 was held in January, Wyden defeated Smith 48-47%, but Smith won a seat in the General election 49-47%

[DWPerry]

From 1958 the Senator defeating an incumbent in the General election with the highest %

1958 Edmond Muskie (Maine) 60.8
1960 J. Allen Frear, Jr. (Delware) 50.7
1962 Peter Dominick (Colorado) 53.6
1964 Joseph D. Tydings (Maryland) 62.8
1966 Charles H. Percy (Illinois) 55.0
1968 Richard S. Schweiker (Pennsylvania) 51.9
1970 John V. Tunney (California) 53.9
1972 William D. Hathaway (Maine) 53.2
1974 Gary Warren Hart (Colorado) 57.2
1976 Richard G. Lugar (Indiana) 58.8
1978 William L. Armstrong (Colorado) 58.7
1980 James Abdnor (South Dakota) 58.2
1982 Jeff Bingaman (New Mexico) 53.8
1984 Tom Harkin (Iowa) 55.5
1986 Bob Graham (Florida) 55.0
1988 Richard H. Bryan (Nevada) 52.1
1990 Paul Wellstone (Minnesota) 50.5
1992 Russell Feingold (Wisconsin) 52.6
1994 William H. Frist (Tennessee) 57
1996 Tim Johnson (South Dakota) 51
1998 Charles E. Schumer (New York) 54
2000 Thomas R. Carper (Delware) 56
2002 Mark Pryor (Arkansas) 54
2004 John Thune (South Dakota) 51

note 1974 John Glenn defetaed incumbent in Dem Primary

[DWPerry]

Where do you get these results?

No, not trying to keep my sources secure, was out of town for a few days. I got my info from Wikipedia, under Senate Election Results, they list the breakdown by State by year.

[DWPerry]

Chuck Robb, 1988, 71%

But, Robb didn't defeat an incumbent, he won an Open Seat.

[DWPerry]

Dale Bumpers 84.9% in 1974 defeated incumbent in Arkansas Democratic Primary