1972Final resultsIncumbent defeated
1972 election for Florida Senate District 38
Florida State Senate · Florida
3 seats: Don J. Gruber (R), Richard A. Pettigrew (D), Ralph R. Poston Sr. (D) won.
3 seatsDon J. GruberRepublican · winner
18.1%84,041
Richard A. PettigrewDemocrat · winner
17.7%82,236
Ralph R. Poston Sr.Democrat · winner · incumbent
17.1%79,356
Mike ThompsonRepublican
16.8%77,859
Dick MaloyRepublican
15.4%71,486
Edmond J. GongDemocrat · incumbent
14.8%68,504
463,482 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1972
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET