1980Final results
1980 election for California's 9th District
U.S. House · California
Fortney H. "pete" Stark (D) won with 55.3% of the vote, defeating Bill Kennedy (R) by 14.2 points.
Fortney H. "pete" StarkDemocrat · winner
55.3%90,504
Bill KennedyRepublican
41.1%67,265
Steven W. ClaninLibertarian
3.6%5,823
163,592 votes
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1980
Races before and after
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Fortney H. "pete" StarkBill Kennedy
$32.6K
Raised by the campaign
$31K
$47.2K
Spent by the campaign
$28.8K
$0
Cash on hand
$0
Campaign money: FEC, through Dec 31, 1980.
Source: FEC campaign filingsUpdated Dec 31, 1980