The enterprise. [volume] (Harlem, Mont.) 1899-1926, 1912-10-17
ROOSEVELT NOT A.
GOOD v0TE-GETTER
HIS POPULARITY NOT SHOWN BY
THE VOTES HE HAS RECEIVED.
RECORD WILL SURPRISE MANY
In New York When He Ran for Gov
ernor He Did Not Get Full Party
support-Presidenti Vote
When Analysed 10 Not to
Hie ADVANTAGE.

where as a marvellous vote-getter.
I'VE are for Teddy because he will
elect our county ticket" chorused the
Roosevelt shouters prior to the re-
nomination Of President Taft. And
even now, when. having failed to get
the Republican nomination for
third term, he is heading q boiling
Third Party organization. there are
many Republicans who seem to think
that he has a strong hold upon the
people The fact is the record shows
that he is not successful vote get
ter. The belief which prevails In
some parts Of the country that Roose-
welt has a magic hold upon the people
is not supported by the facts. Mr..
Roosevelt's own activity In self-ad-
vertising is largely responsible for the
belief.
Take. for instance, his home state
of New York. Here are the figures
of the Republican vote cast In the
three elections of 1896, 1898 and 1900,
the two years before and the two
years after Roosevelt was candidate
for governor:
1896, Black .............. 1885
1898, Roosevelt .......... 661,7O7 /
1900, Odell .............. 804,S59
When Roosevelt ran as candidate
for governor he had behind him his
prestige of service in the war with
Spain. He made spectacular CAM
paign with number Of uniformed
soldiers riding with him upon the
rear platform of his special train.
Even with this advantage he polled
$4,000 less votes than Black and
nearly 145,000 less votes than Odell.
This shows that In his own state he
Is not the te-getter which he claims
to be.
Polled Less Votes Than TAFT.
Colonel Roosevelt received an enor-
nous plurality when he ran for presi-
dent in 1904, but that was because
1,280,O00 Democrats declined to vote
for Judge Alton B. Parker The real
test of Roosevelt's plurality is the
number of Republican votes cast for
him. He polled 7,6234s6 votes, but
SNGu Llilb HuulOC1 ?" az oO,oOO 1000 titth
were cast for Taft in 1908 with
Bryan in the field and practical
Democratic harmony restored. Do
these figures show Roosevelt to be a
great vote getter?
The figures as to Illinois are also
interesting and instructive. In 1904
the total Republican vote for Roose-
less than were cast for Charles s.
Deneen for governor. Roosevelt was
supposedly the idol of the Republican
party while Governor Deneen's nomi-
nation was secured at the end Of a
three weeks convention in which bit
ter factional fighting developed. Yet
Deneen, as stated, received 1884
more votes for Roosevelt.
An attempt is made to demonstrate
Colonel Roosevelt's popularity by cit
ing the fact that his plurality in I'LL
nois in 1904 was 305,000, while Taft's
was only 10000 In 1908. The fact Ia
that in 1904 Roosevelt received 632, 645
votes In 1908 Taft received 500 1929
votes, so that out OF about $50, 900
votes the only difference between
Roosevelt's popularity and Taft's
popularity as shown by the total Re-
publican vote was 2,713.
Illinois ia cited merely because it 10
typical of other states.
Some Primary Figures.
Az Republican candidate for presi.
dent last spring, Colonel Roosevelt
polled 81 per cent Of the total vote
cast at the Illinois primaries, but only
4237 per cent of the Taft 1908 vote.
A majority of the Republicans OF II.
linois have not expressed a prefer
ence for Colonel Roosevelt for presi.
dent. In a recent statement Colonel
Roosevelt said: THE primary in ILL.,
nois last spring definitely decided
that I was the choice Of the Illinois
Republican voters for president"
Colonel Roosevelt should DO Informed
than 42.87 per cent Of the Repub.
lican vote in Illinois does not decide
what S7.63 per cent shall do with Z
bolter who denounced their party Be,
cause It would not nominate him.
Similar conditions prevail In other
states.
The foregoing record proves that
Colonel Roosevelt, without regard to
his other essential deficiencies, ID not
q powerful vote-getter. The WIN
with Teddy" buncombe is quite popu.
lar with Colonel Roosevelt and his
supporters with the hope Of dragging
into line timid voters and pot-huntine
politicians. The facts show that az
a vote-getter Roosevelt never had
been as strong as his party. He was
not az strong as Black or Odell In
New York where he is best known:
although running against cripple in
Judge Parker, he ran more than q
million votes behind his party
strength; he was not Al strong a. TAFT
in the country at large; and he was
not as strong a. Taft and Deneen in
Illinois.