The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-03-15

ImpOrtance OF tho Nomination for the
Woo Presidency.
In their anxiety to make q President, the poll
ticians seem to overlook the importance Of
nominating the right kind Of man for Vice Pre-
sident Everybody is specializing about the
chances of this prominent man and the other
Of obtaining the nomination for the Presi-
dency, or about the chances of his election in
the event Of his being the chosen candidate Of
his party. There are competitors in album
dance for the nomination to the Presidency
In the democratic party, the republican
party, and the new Union Opposition party.
But NO one appears to care for the honor
Of being Vice President, and tho political wire
pullers, and the organs Of the various par
ties, give themselves no trouble about the
matter. Yet the office of Vice President
Il in every election very important, because
the President may die, as did Harrison and
Taylor, and the Vice President become the
President But in the present state of parties
Inland out Of Congress, the nomination for Vice
President assumes peculiar Importance, for the
simple reason that one of thecandidates for the
Vice Presidency will have an equal chance
with any Of the candidates for the Presidency
Of becoming the chief magistrate from the start.
We will explain.
With only two Presidential candidates in
the feld-s democrat and q republican
there must almost necessarily be an cleo
ton by the people-that is, by the cleo.
tors; for the chances are very remote
that the number Of votes would be exactly
equal for both, and as one would therefore
have majority, he would be elected. But
with three or more candidates contending for
the prize, none Of them may have majority Of
all the electoral votes, and none, therefore, may
be elected. In the present instance the appear.
ance of third candidate, the man of the Union
Opposition, may produce that result The re-
publicans may not have as many votes as
are necessary to choice, and the Union party
may so weaken the conservative strength Of
the democracy as to reduce its votes below
the desired number, and the consequence
would be that the election must go into
the House of Representatives, according to
the provision in the constitution which requires
the popular branch Of Congress to elect Pre-.
sident from the three highest candidates, the
election to be by States-that is, that all the
representatives from any State count but as
one vote, the majority of each delegation to
determine on what side 1t is to be cast. In
order to q choice quorum of two.thirds
must be present, and it is necessary that one
candidate should have a majority of all the
States.
Now, 1t so happens that no party has ma
jority in the House, and If each of the parties
hold out from the second Wednesday in Febru-
airy, the day on which the electoral votes of
each State must be opened and counted in
Congress, till the 4th of March, the day on
which the Inauguration must take place, there
would be no election, and the Vice President
would then become President. What was done
once may be done again. It is as easy to hold
out in the case Of President as in the case of
Speaker, with this difference, that the demo-
Gratis would be better rewarded for preventing
an election than they were in the case of Sher-
man in this Congress; for If they can only sue
coed in preventing choice in the House, they
would be sure Of having democratic Presi-
dent, seeing that the majority of the Senate is
democratic, and that majority of the Senate
elect o Vice President when there is no cleo
ton by the people. Before the Senate there
can be only two candidates for Vice President
the two highest on the list; so that one Of them
must be elected on the first ballot.
In 1901 there were FIVE candidates for Presi-
dent, all Of whom carried States. Thomas
Jefferson and Aaron Burr were the two highest
on the list, but both equal. Jefferson was elect
ed by the House Of Representatives
In 1925 there were four candidates, and no
choice by the people, when John Quincy
Adams was elected by the House.
In 1887 Richard NJ. johnson was elected Vice
President by the Senate, none of the candidates
having majority of electoral votes. Whathas
occurred two or three times in the history of
the Union may happen now again in 1860.
II the election Of President goes into the
House of Representatives, the democrats
will have the game almost completely in
their own hands. The South American Opposi-
ton or Union party may not assist the demo-
Gratis to elect their man, but they can neither
publican candidate. There is only one way in
which the democracy could be defeated The
republicans Of the House might possibly con-
centrate ON the candidate of the Union Opposi-
ton party, and thus elect him in preference to
allowing the democratic Vice President to be-
come President in default of an election. In
any case conservative will rule in the White
House, and q republican cannot be President
of the United States, If the election goes into
the House Of Representatives.
If the democrats were sure that the repub-
licans cannot have majority of the electoral
vote, and that the election must 60 into the
House Of Representatives, there is one way
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