The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-11-23
POLITICAL GOSSIP
Debs, Socialist, Got $4,000
Votes In Kansas.
PrOhibitionists Cast Just Half
That Number.
POPULISTS SURPRISED
Only 5000 Votes Polled in the
State.
Other Strange Facts About the
Election.
POPULISTS SURPRISED

ticket have now been tabulated from
enough counties so that the vote for
the minor parties on president can be
estimated with approximate accuracy.
When the official count for the state
is completed the figures will be found
close to the following:
Debs. Socialist, $4,000.
Swallow, Prohibition, 1920.
Watson, Populist, 5000.
The smallness of the vote polled by
the Watson electoral ticket is one of
the surprises of the election. 1t was
expected that many of the old Popu-
lists would vote for Parker and other
would go back to the Republicans
from whom they came, but it was not
expected that the Populist party would
become the smallest in the state.
Four years ago there was Populist
electoral ticket and Democratic cleo
toral ticket. There was no anti-fusion
law at that time and the same men
were on both tickets, and both were
for Bryan for president The Populist
ticket polled 1O2,416 and the Demo-
cratic 6o,1S5. In only four years that
100000 has gone glimmering.
The anti-fusion law has practically
destroyed the Populist party so far
to remaining a big power in Kansas
politics is concerned. There are still
many Kansas voters who are not en-
tirely in sympathy with the Republican
party, but who would not stand for
Parker and eastern Democracy at all.
Roosevelts personality appealed to
them and Mr.. Watson's praise of
Roosevelt and denunciation of De-
mocracy justified them in voting for
Roosevelt Had the Republican candi-
date been some one else they would
probably have voted for either Wat
son or DebS.
Another surprising thing is that
there should be such great difference
in the pluralities of the Republican
national and state tickets, considering
the small vote polled by Watson. 1t |
was conceded by all before the cleo
ton that Roosevelt would be far ahead |
of Hoch in plurality, but it was sup
posed that it would come about by |
watson taking a good many votes /
from Parker which would be combined /
on Dale in opposition for Hoch- For I
instance, a common guess was that [
Roosevelt would receive 200, 900 votes /
Parker 100000 and Watson $4,000 |
which would give Roosevelt 100000 |
plurality. The Parker and Watson I
vote would be combined on Dale /
which HOch would receive a vote |
little less than Roosevelt's, so that his I
p tL would be about $4,000 less
Mr.. Hoch's plurality is about SIS 900 i
less than that of President Roosevelt, /
but it did not happen by the vote in /
opposition to Roosevelt being divided
between Parker and Watson and |
united on Dale. Watson's vote ac-
counts for only 5000 of Roosevelt's /
increase over Hoch- The other $4,000
came from some other cause
The total vote for the Republican /
and Democratic candidates for presi- /
dent and governor have not yet been
compiled, so it is impossible just vet
TO say how many votes one candidate
is behind another. Chairman Stubbs
stated repeatedly before election that
his poll showed that Hoch would run
almost UP with Roosevelt in total vote |
1t is probable, of course. that he fell
several thousand behind on account of |
Populists who voted for Roosevelt but /
who also voted for Dale. The faction /
al differences in the Republican party
also cost Mr.. Hoch some votes.
At first guess one would suppose
that about $4,000 persons svoted for
Roosevelt who then turned around
and voted for Dale, but this conclu-
sion is not necessarily correct. The
indications are that there were a good i
many fustoniSts who would not vote
for Parker, and as they did not like
TO vote for a Republican they simply
skipped the electoral ticket altogether.
about eight per cent. failed to vote for
president at all. AS no Republican
skipped Roosevelt, and as all Prohi-
bitionists and Socialists voted their ma
tional tickets, the only reasonable pre-
sumption is that it was the fusionists
who did not vote on president. If this
ratio held good through the state it
would mean that about $4,000 voters
did not express themselves on presi-
dent This would detract from Par
ker'S vote and swell RooSevelt's plu-
rality by just that much, and would
consequently account for part of the
difference between Roosevelt and
Hoch.
The figures on which the Prohibit
ton, Socialist and Populist vote is
based are the total official vote from
seventy-five counties of the state. in
Guiding nearly all of the big counties
Most of those that are lacking are in
the western half of the state: These
seventy-five counties give Swallow,
$3.50; Debs, 1864, and Watson,
4,S1O. From these figures are esti-
mated the totals given above.
The Socialist vote has increased
nearly ten-fold since the last presi-
Dental election. Four years ago the
Social Democratic party. which was
the same as the Socialist is now, polIed
1905. This year it will have about
$4,000.
The Prohibition vote has just about
doubled. Four years ago it was 3,6O5.
This year it will be something over
1000.
The Socialist ticket got big vote in 5
the southeastern part of the state.
vote were as follows: Crawford ,1,973;
Cherokee, 1872; Wyandotte, loss:
Sedgwick. $40; Montgomery, 452;
Shawnee, 425; Lyon, $50; Sumner
does not include the vote in Labette
and Cowley.
The Prohibition ticket received its
largest vote in these counties: Sedg-
wick. 3S5: Rice. 234; Butler, 210; Frank
lin, 2O9; Lyon. 1872; Douglas, ia; Shaw
nee. $50: Osborne, 149; Jewell Jas;
Wyandotte. 141.
The largest vote for the Watson cleo
toral ticket was in the following coun-
ties: Smith. 4s0; Clay, 413: SedgwicI,
24S; Saline, 1873; ottawa, 1877; Cloud, $50;
Linn. 149; Graham, '119.
The only county in which Watson |