Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1916-11-11
NORTH DAKOTA
VOTE MAY Be
INVESTIGATED
Republican Chiefs Confer With
Attorney General in Regard
to Irregularities
ONE PRECINCT RECOUNT
SHOWS GAIN FOR HUGHES
Believed Official Probe Might
Change Result in State
and Nation.

Change Result in State
and Nation.
Republican. chiefs Of North Dakota
were in conference yesterday with At.
torney General linde with regard to a
possible official probe Of North Dako-
ta's vote in Tuesdays general elec.
tion. The attorney general when in.
terviewed yesterday refused to make
statement, but did acknowledge that
the matter had been taken up with
him and that an investigation of some
kind was then under consideration. No
basis for suspecting Irregularities in
connection with, Tuesdays balloting
was given.
Might Change Result.
With New Mexico, West Virginia,
New Hampshire and Minnesota swing
ing to Hughes, and leaving him only
seven votes behind Wilson, the nation
al electors now stand divided as fol-
lows: Wilson. 269: Hughes, 262. The
possibility of a recount in North Da-
kota, therefore, assumes the most vital
importance for, should North Dakota
by any chance be given to Hughes, it
would make him president, with one
electoral vote to spare, while it would
reduce Wilson's total to 264, two short
of the sufficient number.
How Vote Stands.
No.kl Will, Aftoon rvocinrfc
missing, gives Wilson 54,N9 and
Hughes 53,164, a lead of only Ills for
the president. One recount already
made, in the Max precinct in Mclean
county, has produced another vote for
Hughes. Should there be similar
result in only half of North Dakota's
1000 precincts Wilson's lead would
be seriously endangered.
Technical Irreguiarit'es.
There have been technical irregu-
larities, which may not. however,
prove of serious consequence. In Dunn
county, for instance, no one knows the
vote in two precincts. After the bal
lotting was finished, the election board
is said to have locked up the ballots
without counting them, and to have re-
turned the boxes to the county audi
tor, with no official abstract of the
vote. 1t is claimed that court action
could be resorted to to compel the
election board to make and announce
it's count, instead of waiting until the
official canvassing board meets some
days hence. .~.
~ AbnormaIly Large Vote.
There is no question whatever that
Tuesdays vote was abnormal, even
for state which is growing so rapid
ly as is North Dakota. For Wilson
and Hughes, with fifteen precincts
missing, the total vote stands 1O7.443.
This is more than 1000 greater than
the vote for governor in the same pre-
cincts, in spite of the fact that Lynn
J. Frazier is the best vote-getter who
ever has sought the gubernatorial
chair, andsthat he had $4,000 Non-Part-
isan league votes back Of him. The
Non-Partisan league was not interest.
ed in the national election; it made no
effort to get out vote for either
Hughes or Wilson; neither Of these
candidates had any decided personal
following or unusual degree OF popu.
la-ity in the state. Yet they polled
together 1859 more votes than did
Frazier and Macarthur.
Senatorial Vote Low.
As between the presidential and the
senatorial contests, the discrepancy
in the total vote is even more notable.
The fight between McCumber and
Burke was one of the real issues OF
the campaign. McCumber had the
united strength of his party back OF
him. Burke was an idol Of the Dem
ocrats and the only man in the his
tory of North Dakota thrice elected
to the governorship. Yet, with all
their pulling power, they polled to-
gether but 96,334 votes, or 1.lO9 less
than were given Wilson and Hughes.
McCumber, at that, ran $500 votes
ahead of the leader of his national
ticket, but John Burke. the native
son, ran $4,000 votes behind Wilson.
Big Cain Over Primaries.
Last June North Dakota staged the
hottest primary election in its his.
tory. There were real contests for
nominations on both the Republican
and Democratic tickets, and the to-
tai vote cast by members of all par.
ties for candidates for the United
States senate was S3.36S, or 24,O75
less than cast by members of two par
ties for president last Tuesday. The
Republican vote last June was, of
course. abnormal. In selecting al
candidate for the United States sen
ate, GS,SSJ ballots were cast. There |
was nothing abnormal in the Demo-
cratic vote for Burke and Helstrom,
which totaled only 13,436. In the SEN
atorial contest, 1921 supposed Re-
publicans who voted for McCumber
or Hanna or one of the other Repub-
lican candidates in June, did not vote
for the Republican nominee last Tues
day. The returns would indicate that
Burke garnered these 1921 votes
from the Republicans and the support
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