Evening star., 1935-06-09
PARTY LINES DUE
T0FADE IN COUNTY
Arlington Prepares for Pri-
mary, With Voting
Open to All.
BY ANGUS GREEN.
c%ae rorras1or5ap+ of T-t,e Stor

B1 ANUS UhEEN,
STAFF Correspondent of The Star.
ARLINGTON COURT HOUSE, Va.
June 8.-The Democratic primary
slate having been completed, Arlington
County voters may now expect to hear
the heavy bombardment which en-
battled candidates will turn on the
ramparts of their foes. The vocal
artillery will reSound through the
county. with the last echo not dying
until the general election in November.
1t is doubtful if the primary is going
to be strictly party affair, for the
Virginia law makes no provision for
voters declaring their party afhliation.
Any qualified voter, whatever his po-
litical faith. is entitled to participate
in the Democratic family fight. The
assumption is, however, that voters in
the primary will support the party
nominee in the general election.
Chance for Double Shot.
But that is only an assumption. if
past performances and present indl-
cations amount to anything. Arling-
ton County has not had local prl-
mary in many years, but in other
primary fights the practice has been
to express a choice in the primary
and do the same thing all over again
in the general election, ignoring the
nominee if he is disliked.
AS matter of fact there are some
who will use the primary as means
of taking two cracks" at a candl-
date For instance. if John Doe is a
candidate in the Democratic primary
and Richard Roe, Republican,
doesn't like Doe. Roe will vote in the
primary against him and then cast
another vote against him in the gen.
eral election if Doe gets the nomina-
ton.
This situation is apparently develop
ing, now as it becomes more or less
evident that goodly number of Re
publicans are going to take part in
the primary. Politically minded per-
sons claim that Republicans 60 into
the primary and vote for the weakest
candidate on the theory that he would
be easier to defeat in the general cleo
ton.
Regularity Means Little.
Advantages in this strategy, even
though it fails, are claimed on the
grounds that the winner of the nomi-
nation has been "Softened up" and
his weakness exposed by stiff pri-
mary fight. But Republicans are not
the only ones TO back pedal on
Democratic nominees. Indeed. many
Democrats have been heard to say
that they will not support the party
nominees should they be dissatisfied
with the primary results and vice versa
If the Republican convention names
candidates distaSteful to some men,
bers of the G. o. P.
AL Of this tends to prove, in the
opinion Of observers. that party regu-
larity means less in local elections
than State and national elections
This may be because party response
blllty in the county has not developed
10 the extent that it has in the
State and Nation.
II Is safe TO assume. however. that
those who win nominations in the
primary are going to stump the
county on platform Of stick by the
party What those who are de-
feated are actually going to do is not
known today. although they probably
will issue statements Of the customary
kind n which they say It is the
duty of Democrats to support
Democratic nominees, and let it &c
at that.
Fight Due to Begin.
These eventualities are two months
distant, and the immediate business
at hand, in the candidates opinion,
Is TO get a nomination And to that
end they are concentrating their ef-
forts. The few meetings heretofore
held were mainly used for 'limberine
up exercises. The real fight could
not start until the whites of their
eyes" could be seen. The expiration
of filing time for the primary brought
their opponents into full view and
from now on the fight is out in the
open.
Ostensibly, the candidates in the
primary are running individually and
without any tie-up with other candi-
dates. Virtually all have stated that
they are tending strictly to their own
campaigns and taking no part what
soever in other fights. This probably
is true to large extent, and it is
all true in so far as the general public
knows, but it has been said by per-
sons well-informed about local poll
tics that there has been some quiet
undercover exchanges of support.
1t is also true that no one is refus-
ing any support if it can be obtained
without the definite promise of re-
ciprocation. No one conversant with
the political situation doubts that
most of the candidates have their
own choices for the other Offices and
will do what they can to help them
even though in the final analysis the
help is limited to their own vote.
The voters were dealt two surprises
by the completion of the primary
slate. Whereas four years ago there
was mad scramble for the five
places on the county board, with 81
candidates in the field, this year only
nine have filed for the primary. Then
there is no fight for the nomination
for trial justice, whereas four years
ago there we're four or five in the
race for that post.