Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-07-08
DEADLOCK SHOWS
NEED Of CHANGES
IN VOTING SYSTEM
BY ROBERT T. SMALL
(Special Leased Wire to The Journal.)
/Nnurriobf 1904

Democratic national convention.
The Republicans long have pro-
tested against the influence welded
in their conventions by states of
solid south which never contributed
to Republican success at the polls
in November.
Some Democrats are awakening to
the fact that at last their conven-
lions are virtually controlled by
states which give majority to
Democratic candidate for president
only once in a dark blue moon.
| The state of Pennsylvania, for in
stance, casts block Of 76 votes in
the Democratic national convention
Can anyone remember when Penn
sylvania went Democratic in ma
| tional election? Even in 1912 when
| the Republicans were split wide
| open, Pennsylvania gave a plurality
| to Roosevelt as against Woodrow
| Wilson and Mr.. Taft. Yet Pennsyl-
| vania in the Democratic convention
J has the voting strength of at least
| ten of the states Of the solid south
| in the Republican convention.
Pennsylvania can help in prevent
| ing the Democrats from reaching al
agreement on a candidate and Penu-
sylvania has a strong voice in shap-
| ing the party platform. 1t is small
! wonder that Democrats should be-
| gin asking themselves why this
should be so.
One delegate to the convention
| figured it out that twenty-seven
states which in 1920 rolled up a ma
| jority of 6,901 900 votes against the
Democratic party, contrilled GIG
| Of the 1893 votes in the Madison
Square Garden conclave. This was
| only .116 votes short of the 1872
necessary to nominate under the two
thirds rule. The Republicans never
in the world would consent to such
a state of affairs in their conven-
ton. There has never been time
when southern states even consti-
tuted one-fourth of the votes IN
Republican gathering.
This preponderence Of northern
and western states that never vote
the Democratic ticket accounts in
large measure for the maintenance
of the two-t thirds rule in the Demo.
cratic quadrennial gatherings. If
only a majority were necessary 10
nominate. the Democratic delegates
from the non-Democratic states
could dominate the conventions from
every angle.
At the top of the list of states
! that can never be depended upon to
help the Democratic ticket with cleo
toral votes, the delegates who are
seriously delving into this subject
of representation, naturally place
Pennsylvania, which in 1920 turned
in a plurality of something like 7O0,-
900 votes against the Democratic
ticket. Pennsylvania, as stated, has
rs votes in the convention. Next to
Pennsylvania in the useless"
column are placed states like Wis
consin, with 26 votes; Iowa, with
| 26; Minnesota, with "a; Michigan,
with 80; Illinois, with So; Kansas,
with 20; California, with &c; Con.
necticut, with IA; Maine. with II;
| Vermont, s; New Hampshire, g.;
North Dakota, 10; South Dakota,
10; Utah, 8 Washington, IA, and
Wyoming, 6.
In a secondary list, considered al
most as strongly anti-Democratic in
I presidential sense, the calculators
place Idaho s votes, Indiana, 80;
Massa -husetts, So; Montana 8; Ne
braska, 10: New Jersey, %; New
| York, 80; New Mexico, g. Oregon, 10,
aud Rhode Island, 10.
The first list comprises 374 votes
in the national convention the sec
ond 242, making up the total of GIG
previously mentioned. The first list
gave a Republican plurality of A.
476,000 IN 1920; the second list rolled
up plurality of 2,425, 900.
1t can be argued that some of the
lies in the first list have at times
| gone Democratic, as California did
| in 1916, for instance, making pos
| sible the reelection of Woodrow
Wilson. All political students know,
however, that the 1916 result in the
Golden state We a fluke and moth
ing more. Some of the states on the
| second list also have gone Demo-
cratic. notably in 1912 when three
tickets were in the field But vir-
| tually in each instance where Wood
row Wilson was given the verdict
IN 1912, MS opponents, MeSsrs Tat
and Roosevo.t rolled up a higher
combined vote. New York, for in.
stance, voted for Wilson in 1912 but
1t gave Taft and Roosevelt combin-
ed, plurality of 1894 votes.
And 1912 vas the only time New
York had given her presidential
votes to a Democrat since Cleve
lands election in 1S92--a span OF
thirty-two long, lean years.
Democrats naturally dislike to ad-
NIT that any section of the country
IS solldly arrayed against them, yet
the figures show that in most of
the states enumerated in lists num-
bers one and two, the Democrats
a a ,I,1
cess as the Republicans have of re-
peat1ng their victory of 1920 in Ten
nessee.
Ihere may be little or no chance
OF changing the basis oe represen
tation in the Democratic conventions
during the next eight or twelve
years, but the subject is bou-d TO
be discussed and there will be many
VINO favor the policy of the Repub-
ncans in cutting down the number
Of votes from states which NAV he
counted in advance in the opposite
column.
Democrats visiting New York dur.
ing the past fortnight have discov. |
cred many unusual things.
Some OF the delegates were in |
chned to grin and scott at the deem
sea going, open-face hacks that are |
SUN to be had upon the streets dur.
ing the good old summer time. They |
nave laughed at New York for cling |
ing to the old ebay burners" and |
some have taken a ride just to go |
back home and tell the folks about |
what jay town the metropolis |
really is.
The wise crackers have found
however, that the laugh was on the
wrong side Of the face, as it were |
tor alter riding a few blocks in the |
nacks" they have been astounded |
10 find the drivers demanding some. |
thing like 50 for the same number
or blocks that would cost thirty |
cents or less in taxi. Loud cries for |