Massachusetts general election, 1974

A Massachusetts general election was held on November 3, 1974 in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

The election included:

• statewide elections for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of the Commonwealth, Treasurer, and Auditor;
• district elections for U.S. Representatives, State Representatives, State Senators, and Governor's Councillors; and
• ballot questions at the state and local levels.

Democratic and Republican candidates were selected in party primaries held September 10, 1974.

Statewide elections

Governor & Lieutenant Governor

Democrats Michael Dukakis and Thomas P. O'Neill III were elected Governor and Lieutenant Governor, respectively, over Republican incumbents Francis W. Sargent and Donald R. Dwight.

Attorney General

Incumbent Attorney General Robert H. Quinn did not run for reelection.

Francis X. Belotti defeated George Sacco, Edward Francis Harrington, S. Lester Ralph, Edward M. O'Brien, and Barry Hannon in the Democratic Primary.

Josiah Spaulding defeated Charles Codman Cabot, Jr. and William I. Cowin for the Republican nomination.

Belotti defeated Spaulding and Socialist Workers Party candidate Jeanne Lafferty in the general election.

Massachusetts Attorney General Democratic Primary, 1974[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Francis X. Bellotti	274,439	36.21%
	Democratic	George Sacco	176,075	23.23%
	Democratic	Edward Francis Harrington	126,771	16.71%
	Democratic	S. Lester Ralph	90,489	11.94%
	Democratic	Edward M. O'Brien	56,796	7.50%
	Democratic	Barry Hannon	33,240	4.39%
	Write-in		21	0.00%

Massachusetts Attorney General Republican Primary, 1974[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Josiah Spaulding	76,356	41.32%
	Republican	Charles Codman Cabot, Jr.	63,127	34.16%
	Republican	William I. Cowin	45,244	24.49%
	Write-in		54	0.03%

Massachusetts Attorney General Election, 1974[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Francis X. Belotti	912,244	49.67%
	Republican	Josiah Spaulding	894,754	48.71%
	Socialist Workers	Jeanne Lafferty	29,749	1.62%
	Write-in		20	0.00%

Secretary of the Commonwealth

State Representative Paul Guzzi defeated incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth John Davoren in the Democratic primary.

Republican John M. Quinlan won the Republican nomination unopposed after former New England Patriots player Ron Burton withdrew from the race.^[4]

In the general election, Guzzi defeated Republican John M. Quinlan.

Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth Democratic Primary, 1974[5]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Paul Guzzi	398,684	56.81%
	Democratic	John Davoren	303,097	43.19%
	Write-in		13	0.00%

Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth Election, 1974[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Paul Guzzi	1,155,636	64.49%
	Republican	John M. Quinlan	636,203	35.51%
	Write-in		48	0.00%

Treasurer and Receiver-General

Incumbent Treasurer and Receiver-General Robert Q. Crane defeated Charles Mark Furcolo in the Democratic Primary.

Erna Ballantine ran an unsuccessful sticker campaign for the Republican nomination.^[7]

Massachusetts Treasurer and Receiver-General Democratic Primary, 1974[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Robert Q. Crane	355,216	51.03%
	Democratic	Charles Mark Furcolo	340,882	48.97%
	Write-in		27	0.00%

Massachusetts Treasurer and Receiver-General Election, 1974[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Robert Q. Crane	1,387,119	99.97%
	Write-in		382	0.03%

Auditor

Incumbent Auditor Thaddeus M. Buczko ran unopposed in the Democratic Primary and the General Election.

Massachusetts Auditor General Election, 1974 [10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Thaddeus M. Buczko	1,369,431	99.99%
	Write-in		196	0.01%

References

1. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 218.
2. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 66.
3. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 381.
4. Peter Lucas; Rachelle Patterson (June 2, 1974). "Sargent defeats Sheehan, 2-1; both declare GOP convention result a victory". The Boston Globe.
5. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 225.
6. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 389.
7. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 80.
8. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 232.
9. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 397.
10. Massachusetts Election Statistics 1974. p. 405.