STILL LIBERAL, BUT LESS SO

President Nixon will face a Senate that retains its Democratic majority and liberal bent, though both in membership and temperament it has undergone a slight shift to the right. The Republicans gained a net of at least four seats, reducing the Democrats' edge from 63-37 to 59-41--or perhaps even 58-42. The G.O.P. picked up seats in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida, Maryland, Arizona and Oklahoma, and was close to another in Oregon. The Democrats toppled Republicans in California and Iowa. The new Senate will be a little more conservative in dealing with federal spending and controls, civil rights, gun restrictions, crime bills, student disorders and poverty programs. The right-wing coalition of Republicans and Southern Democrats, which in the past year won 80% of the votes on the issues it chose to take a stand on, will be even more effective.

Short Coattails. Quite a handful of new Senators will be more conservative than the men whom they replaced (see box opposite). Among those conservatives are Alabama's former Lieutenant Governor James Allen, a close pal of George Wallace, and such Republicans as Arizona's Barry Goldwater, Oklahoma's Henry Bellmen and Kentucky's Marlow Cook.

On the other side, Iowa's Democratic Harold Hughes will be more liberal than retiring Republican Bourke Hickenlooper. Missouri's Thomas Eagleton will also be more liberal--and more useful--than Edward Long, whom Eagleton defeated in the primary election. And some of the new Republican Senators, notably Maryland's Charles McCurdy Mathias Ir. and Pennsylvania's Richard Schweiker, will add strength to the growing group of G.O.P. progressives.

Altogether, nine states voted for a Senator from one party and a presidential candidate from another. Particularly in the South and West, Richard Nixon's coattails were not very long or strong. Generally, the Republicans tended to be better financed or better organized, and this helped them especially in Ohio and Colorado. In Kentucky, Republican Judge Cook outspent Democrat Katherine Peden by well over 2 to 1, but had a tough time defeating the only woman running for the U.S. Senate this year.

Fallen Oaks. The Viet Nam issue did not stop some of the best-known Democratic doves from doing exceptionally well against strongly conservative opponents in hawkish states that went for Nixon or Wallace. Arkansas voters approved of J. William Fulbright for his national stature, congressional seniority and defiance of Lyndon Johnson. Frank Church easily surmounted Republican Congressman George V. Hansen, became the first Idaho Democrat ever returned for a third term. Among his constituents, Church's Viet Nam stand burnished his claim of independence from Johnson. South Dakota voters re-elected George McGovern because he displayed obviously deeper knowledge of national and world affairs than the G.O.P.'s ex-Governor Archie Gubbrud.

Some old Senate oaks were cut down. His age, liberalism and prolonged absences from Oklahoma frustrated the fourth-term bid of Mike Monroney, 66, the industrious populist who has been the leading aviation specialist in the Senate. He was beaten by Republican ex-Governor Henry Bellmon, 47. Much the same factors conspired to defeat Alaska's Ernest Gruening, 81, who campaigned so lackadaisically that he lost the Democratic primary.

In what could be the most startling reverse, Oregon's irascible Wayne Morse, 68, was running narrowly behind Republican Robert Packwood, 36, a three-term state legislator. The 24-year reign of Wayne has been one of the most remarkable in the Senate. He switched parties in mid-career and upset his own state Democrats by endorsing the 1966 Senate Republican candidate, having broken with Lyndon Johnson over Viet Nam. Oregonians have wearied of his maverick ways. In debate, Morse seemed a pale shadow of himself, while Packwood appeared to be the aggressive Morse of old. Packwood organized superbly on a block-by-block basis, promised to pay more attention than Morse did to Oregon affairs.

Looking to '70. Several incumbents seemed unassailable. Hawaii's Daniel K. Inouye, a Johnson-lining Democrat, swept up 85% of the vote against Wayne Thiessen, a conservative Republican. Almost equally decisive were the victories of the Southern Democratic veterans-- Georgia's Herman Talmadge, North Carolina's Sam Ervin and South Carolina's Ernest Hollings. Among the staunchest Democratic liberals, Connecticut's Abe Ribicoff won comfortably, while Birch Bayh overcame the Nixon trend in Indiana. Humphrey's New York victory did not faze Republican Jacob Javits, whose plurality exceeded 1,000,000. Among the easily elected conservative Republicans were Illinois' Everett Dirksen, New Hampshire's Norris Cotton, North Dakota's Milton Young, Colorado's Peter Dominick and Utah's Wallace Bennett. Vermont Republican George Aiken, who won the nomination of both major parties, had only one complaint: mostly because of the higher price of stamps, his campaign costs since 1962 have escalated by 9%--to $17.09.

The Republicans have hopes of capturing a Senate majority in 1970. Then 26 Democrats will stand for reelection, including a number who are undistinguished and vulnerable. Only seven Republican seats will be on the line, and most seem safe and solid. The G.O.P. needs only eight or nine more Senators to win 50% of the Senate seats --and then any tie votes could be broken by Vice President Spiro Agnew.

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