The 1972 United States Senate election in Idaho took place on November 7, 1972. Incumbent Republican Senator Leonard B. Jordan did not run for re-election. Republican U.S. Representative James A. McClure was elected to succeed him over Democrat Bud Davis.
 | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
 County results McClure: 50–60% 60–70% Davis: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
Republican primary
Candidates
- George V. Hansen, congressman from Pocatello
- James A. McClure, congressman from Payette
- Robert E. Smylie, former three-term governor (1955–1967)
- Glenn Wegner, physician-attorney from Kendrick
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | James McClure | 46,522 | 36.06% | |
| Republican | George V. Hansen | 35,412 | 27.45% | |
| Republican | Glenn Wegner | 24,582 | 19.05% | |
| Republican | Robert E. Smylie | 22,497 | 17.44% | |
| Total votes | 129,013 | 100.00% | ||
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Rose Bowman, activist from Boise
- Bud Davis, president of Idaho State University
- Byron Johnson, attorney from Boise
- W. Anthony Park, attorney general
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Bud Davis | 23,953 | 36.05% | |
| Democratic | W. Anthony Park | 17,636 | 26.54% | |
| Democratic | Byron Johnson | 15,526 | 23.37% | |
| Democratic | Rose Bowman | 9,327 | 14.04% | |
| Total votes | 66,442 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | James McClure | 161,804 | 52.26% |  3.12 | |
| Democratic | William E. Davis | 140,915 | 45.52% |  0.90 | |
| American | Jean L. Stoddard | 6,885 | 2.22% | N/A | |
| Total votes | 309,604 | 100.00% | |||