"We thought we could cut the coattails," D'Amours said last night. "We were unable to cut deeply enough."
Humphrey, a former airline pilot, overcame mild turbulence in his campaign two weeks ago, when his wife was linked to the American College of Orgonomy, a group that believes orgasms are essential to the physical and mental health of people of all ages.
The state's booming economy and the solid reelection of Republican Gov. John H. Sununu both helped Humphrey coast yesterday, despite late polls which said the race was still close.
Kentucky
In a major Republican upset, Mitch McConnell unseated two-term Democratic Sen. Walter D. Huddleston.
The moderate Huddleston, who had easily won reelection in 1978, supported most of President Reagan's economic initiatives during his term. But last night he fell to the unheralded McConnell, a popular judge who had long planned his assault on the Democrat in 1984.
Iowa
Rep. Tom Harkin. (D-Iowa), a traditional liberal, knocked off Sen. Roger W. Jepsen (R-Iowa) after a tightly fought and highly personal campaign.
The 45-year-old Harkin, a five-term veteran of the House, has closely identified himself with agricultural issues and won by consistently large margins in his heavily Republican home district. He capitalized on several major gaffes by Jepsen throughout the campaign.
Jepsen lost a large early lead in the polls in the late spring after disclosures that he reportedly belonged to an Iowa sex club. But a furious series of negative TV ads restored his lead by September, until Harkin retaliated with his own media blitz focusing on Jepsen's "insensitivity."