1972 United States House of Representatives election in Nevada

For related races, see 1972 United States House of Representatives elections.

The 1972 United States House of Representatives election in Nevada was held on Tuesday November 7, 1972, to elect the state's at-large representative. Primary elections were held on September 5, 1972.

1972 United States House election in Nevada

← 1970 November 7, 1972 1974 →

Nominee David Towell James Bilbray Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 94,113 86,349 Percentage 52.15% 47.85%

County results Towell:      50–60%      60–70% Bilbray:      50–60%

Representative At-large before election Walter S. Baring Jr. Democratic Elected Representative At-large David Towell Republican

Republican nominee David Towell won the general election with 52.15% of the vote. Incumbent representative, Walter S. Baring Jr. lost the democratic primary election 52-47.^[1] Baring endorsed republican David Towell, helping him win the general election.

Democratic primary

Democratic Primary:

Bilbray

•   40–50%
•   50–60%

Baring

•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%

Candidates

• Walter S. Baring Jr., Incumbent representative
• James Bilbray, United States army veteran

Background

Conservative Democrat Walter Baring was criticized by the more liberal wing of the democratic party for voting against the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The primaries were typically more competitive than the general election for Baring. He typically got high margins in Nevada's rural 'cow counties' (14 counties apart from Clark, Washoe, and Carson City) However, the massive growth in Clark County and Washoe County would make it significantly more difficult for Baring to win.

Results

Democratic primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	James Bilbray	36,525	52.21
	Democratic	Walter S. Baring Jr. (Incumbent)	31,896	45.60
Total votes			68,421	100.00

Republican primary

Republican Primary:

Towell

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%

Byrnes

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%

Candidates

• David Towell
• William T. Byrnes
• Robert J. Edwards
• Wayne Goodin
• V.M. Markoff

Results

Republican primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	David Towell	13,453	41.50
	Republican	William T. Byrnes	11,764	36.29
	Republican	Robert J. Edwards	2,763	8.53
	Republican	Wayne Goodin	2,411	7.44
	Republican	V.M. Markoff	2,029	6.26
Total votes			32,420	100.00

General Election

General election results^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	David Towell	94,113	52.15%
	Democratic	James Bilbray	86,349	47.85%
Total votes			180,462	100.00%
	Republican gain from Democratic