The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-12-02
By |. A1ITER.

TEE results Of the election campaign in Novem-
Der show that the Party members have COM
plote misunderstanding Of revolutionary parlia-
nlentarsn-and as a consequence, completely
underestimate election campaigns. Although the
results generally showed an advance-in York
vile, Ohio q Communist town councillor was
observation-disclosures the results are not COM
rnenslTate with the support that the Party re-
ceives In New York there was an actual de-
c'irc in the vote, due TO many demonstrating
ec.--but this cannot account for the Wide gap
between the support that the Party receives in
its campaigns of struggle and the election vote
This must be examined, for otherwise the Party
will not be able to carry ON election campaigns
properly and register the support that it has.
There is q decided anti parlianaentarian atti-
t'lde in the Party and among the revolutionary
workers This Is due in part to a nismderstand-
ing of the position of the Party and the Cornmu-
ing International namely that the destruction OF
lie capitalist state cannot take place through the
ballot, but through the revolutionary overthrow
Of the capitalist class The Communist Inter
rational, however, does not oppose revolutionary
pcrlian1entarisnl-o the contrary. the Comm
tern emphasizes the necessity of participation
il the election campaign with the program of
the Psrty and organization of the workers for
this struggle as part of the revolutionary
struggle.
What is the reason for the anti -parliaInentar-
ian attitude Of the Party members and the revo-
lutionary Woriers2 The revolutionary workers
know that millions of workers are disfranchised
Negroes, aliens, migratory workers, workers
fcrc-d to change their place of residence in
senioh Of work, because of evictions etc. In
some states there are poll laws, which discrim-
in@tc p-rtic1larly against the most exploited sec
cr3 cannot vote 1t is obvious that large Sec.
ton of to population-and just those sections
which form part of the workers who are willing
10 fight-cannot vote The workers know that
elections i'll the United States are Clooked-from
the moment of the designation of the candidates
by the capital US through their small controlling
committees to the moment Of counting the
votes There is intimidation, terror, stealing Of
votes etc. The workers even many conserva-
tive workers, therefore come to the conclusion
That it is useless TO vote This has its effect on
the Party membership as we'll
But dcep-seated in the minds of the Party
members and the revolutionary workers the idea
is that participation in the election campaign
holding of meetings, demonstrations, voting, etc
is usless and therefore they carry out this
function mainly on the basis of discipline and
support CT the Party But when many Party
members do not even register vote, when the
call of the Party to register every vote is I'M
needed, then something deeper stops them. This
must be inquired into and cleared up, other
wise the Party will not carry out this phase OF
the revolutionary work that is not only incunl-
bent on us, but is Of tremendous Importance In
the development of the revolutionary struggle.
Is revolutionary parlamentarisrn-a revolu-
tonary election campaign and participation in
activity-part of the Communist
Party program? ALPHABETICALLY YESi 1t
is part of the revolutionary struggle that the
workers led by the Communist Party put up. We
are living In a Socalled democratic" state, In
which the rulers OF the country supposedly are
elected by the people" II Is true that this IA
an illusion. but the laws are made and executed