1986 United States Senate election in Arizona

{{Infobox election

| election_name = 1986 United States Senate election in Arizona

| country = Arizona

| type = presidential

| ongoing = no

| previous_election = 1980 United States Senate election in Arizona

| previous_year = 1980

| next_election = 1992 United States Senate election in Arizona

| next_year = 1992

| election_date = November 4, 1986

| image_size = 125px

| image1 = John McCain 1983.jpg

| nominee1 = John McCain

| party1 = Republican Party (United States)

| popular_vote1 = 521,850

| percentage1 = 60.48%

| image2 = No image.svg

| nominee2 = Richard Kimball

| party2 = Democratic Party (United States)

| popular_vote2 = 340,965

| percentage2 = 39.51%

| map_image = 1986 United States Senate election in Arizona results map by county.svg

| map_size = 220px

| map_caption = County results

McCain: {{legend0|#e27f7f|50–60%}} {{legend0|#d75d5d|60-70%}}

Kimball: {{legend0|#7996e2|50–60%}}

| title = U.S. Senator

| before_election = Barry Goldwater

| before_party = Republican Party (United States)

| after_election = John McCain

| after_party = Republican Party (United States)

}}

The 1986 United States Senate election in Arizona was held on November 4, 1986. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater decided to retire instead of seeking a sixth term. The open seat was won by John McCain, a Republican congressman from Arizona's 1st congressional district and former Navy officer, as well as future 2008 presidential nominee against Democrat Barack Obama, as so was Goldwater in 1964 against incumbent Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson. McCain would remain in the Senate until his death on August 25, 2018.

General election

=Candidates=

Richard Kimball, former member of the Arizona Corporation Commission and State Senator (Democratic)
John McCain, U.S. Representative from Tempe (Republican)

=Campaign=

Initially, Democrats sought to recruit two-term governor Bruce Babbit, but Babbit declined, ultimately to focus on a presidential bid.{{Cite news |date=2023-09-05 |title=Arizona Governor Won't Run in '86 - The Washington Post |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1985/03/19/arizona-governor-wont-run-in-86/2b8d461f-60ad-43d3-95d0-301ce06abc14/ |access-date=2023-09-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905210854/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1985/03/19/arizona-governor-wont-run-in-86/2b8d461f-60ad-43d3-95d0-301ce06abc14/ |archive-date=September 5, 2023 }}{{Cite news |date=1985-03-19 |title=Arizona Governor Tells Plans |language=en-US |pages=21 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/03/19/us/arizona-governor-tells-plans.html |url-status=live |access-date=2023-09-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524170742/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/03/19/us/arizona-governor-tells-plans.html |archive-date=2015-05-24 |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite news |date=2023-09-05 |title=BABBITT OPENS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN - The Washington Post |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1987/01/08/babbitt-opens-presidential-campaign/e4a8cc5d-d56e-4a62-a45c-576511759a36/ |access-date=2023-09-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905212217/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1987/01/08/babbitt-opens-presidential-campaign/e4a8cc5d-d56e-4a62-a45c-576511759a36/ |archive-date=September 5, 2023 }}

Kimball's campaign was subject to negative press from the Arizona Republic and Phoenix Gazette. One Gazette columnist described him as displaying "terminal weirdness."Nowicki, D. & Muller, B. (March 1, 2007). [http://www.azcentral.com/news/specials/mccain/articles/0301mccainbio-chapter6.html The Senate calls.] The Arizona Republic. Retrieved September 16, 2007. McCain ultimately won the election by a margin of 21%.

=Results=

{{Election box begin

| title=General election results[http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1986election.pdf Election Results 1986]

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link

| party = Republican Party (United States)

| candidate = John McCain

| votes = 521,850

| percentage = 60.48%

| change = +11.02%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|party=Democratic Party (United States)|candidate=Richard Kimball|votes=340,965|percentage=39.51%|change=-8.87%}}

{{Election box write-in with party link

| votes = 106

| percentage = 0.01%

| change =

}}

{{Election box majority|votes=180,885|percentage=20.96%|change=+19.88%}}

{{Election box hold with party link

| winner = Republican Party (United States)

| loser =

| swing =

}}