1966 United States Senate election in Massachusetts
The 1966 United States Senate election in Massachusetts was held on November 8, 1966. Republican incumbent Leverett Saltonstall retired after serving for 22 years. Republican Massachusetts Attorney General Edward Brooke defeated Democratic former Governor of Massachusetts Endicott Peabody in a landslide.
Brooke was the first African-American U.S. Senator elected after the end of Reconstruction and the first ever popularly elected, as Reconstruction ended before the passage of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.Republican primary
Candidates
Declared
- Edward Brooke, Massachusetts Attorney General since 1963
Declined
- Leverett Saltonstall, incumbent Senator since 1945
Results
Attorney General Edward Brooke was unopposed for the Republican nomination.Democratic primary
Candidates
Declared
Results