Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-21

! for another chance, defle0 the In
structions of his party in Nebraska,
which had made him a delegate, and
swung to Wilson. His excuse was that
Clark had the Tsmmany support and
no man with New York support must
ment lacked in logic the great orator
made up by his vast persuasiveness,
and Wilson was named.
Many Problems Confronted.
The three cornered campaign raised
many problems about our electoral sys-
tenn. II there had been no ma jority
in the electoral college and the de-
cision had gone to the House of Rep
resentatives. It would have found that
body. voting one ballot to each State,
evenly divided and no majority prob
able. The Senate was Republican. but
no one could tell that the Prosressives
there would have stood with their
party choice for Vice President. A
deadlock Of some sort was high pos
sible. Would Tafts Secretary of State
have inherited the presidency on March
S. 1918? II so. would Congress have
called new election? No one was
certain
Another question arose because OF
the varied methods Of the States In
nominating presidential electors. In
North Dakota and Kansas the Repub-
lican electors had been named by State
conventions prior to the national con-
ventions. After the Republican split
thev announced they were for Roose-
welt, thus delivering the party name
over to the Progressives. To place
Taft ticket OF electors in the field In
those States involved finding new
party label for them, as the name Re-
publican had been appropriated In
other States there was no machinery
provided for naming Roosevelt electors
on new ticket Most of these diff
culties were settled by naming electors
through petitions. but II the result had
been close it is very possible worse
situation would have existed than in
1876.
Party Split Elects Wilson.
Wilson won the election with an
overwhelming electoral vote Of 435. al
though his popular vote was not a ma
tority over the combined Roosevelt and
Taft ballots. Roosevelt won 80 cleo
toral votes, carrying Pennsylvania
Michigan Minnesota. South Dakota,
Washington and IL of the Is from CAL
ifornia, Taft received only the votes of
Vermont and Utah.
The outcome clearly showed that the
convention system had permitted the
party leaders to nominate for President
an unpopular man, against a very
popular one. The machinery OF select
ing delegates and of deciding contests
about delegates, had been in the hands
OF the Taft men. Ths rank and file of
the Republican party had been over
whelmingly for Roosevelt. This led to
numerous efforts at reforming the con-
vention machinery. Many States passed
laws for electing convention delegates
in popular primaries, and others pro-
vided for expressions of popular choice
as to candidates. In the Southern
States the Republican vote had for
years been negligible, and a handful Of
politicians controlled the party ma
chinery. The party decided to reduce
the representation in national conven-
tons of States which did not support
the party candidates. This lessened,
without eliminating. opportunities for
Juggling with Southern Republican del
egatisns.
Party Ranks Disrupted.
The Democrats also considered abol-
ishing their two-thirds rule. but nothing
has ever been done about it, and two
conventions almost as bitter as that of
Baltimore have since tended to disrupt
the party ranks.
The innovations have not been
wholly successful. Presidential pri-
maries have been the reason for long
campaigns and greater campaign ex-
I penditures, and political manipulation
has not been wholly removed by any
means. Electoral laws remain the
work OF parties in power in the States,
ano lean to their advantage against
any independent form of action. Re-
formers continue to clamor for some Of
the changes advocated by the Roose-
welt followers in 1912. The net result
OF that campaign was to give the Dem
ocrats eight years of power during a
period when world history hung in the
balance
Tomorrow: Recent Elections.