Evening star., 1936-09-21
THE POLITICAL
MILL
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.

their own, with 266 as figure essential to
victory. There are 53l electoral votes in
the 48 States. and q majority Of these
votes, 266. is the sine qua non for presi-
Dental victory. AL kinds of combina-
tions of electoral vote figures are set
down, in the hope that one of them will
prove the winning combination. 1t is q
favorite pastime of the Republicans-as
well as the Democrats. BY carrying
l8 of the States Landon, the G. o. p.
standard bearer, could win, leaving 30
States to Roosevelt.
$3.50
The first group in this list of 18 States
which the Republicans hope to carry is
New England, as follows: Massachusetts,,
IT; Maine, S; New Hampshire 4; Ver-
mont, g.: Connecticut, g. and Rhode
Island, T. a total of Al electoral votes.
The second group comprises New York,
with Al; New Jersey, Is: Delaware 3,
and Pennsylvania 36 total of lO2. The
third group is made up of Ohio, with 26:
Indiana, IA, and Illinois, %, total of SO.
The fourth group is Michigan, with 10;
Minnesota, IL; Iowa, II; Kansas, 9, and
Nebraska, 7. total of 81. The grand
total for these groups Is 269 electoral
electoral college.
Many an IF" remains, however, to be
answered before the Republicans can
count on these States. Democrats sniff
scornfully at the idea Landon can carry
anywhere near all of them. Yet it is
becoming increasingly apparent to many
persons. including some Democrats. that
all of these States are battle-ground, and
some OF them are surely going Repub-
lican. Furthermore, the Republicans
believe they have a chance to carry sew
eral other States outside this list of 49,
This tabulation of electoral votes is
set down now. six weeks before the elec-
tion, not as propheSy of what is to
come, but merely to show how the Re-
publlcanS can win a presidential elec-
ton without any of the Southern States.
the so-called border States including
Maryland. the Pacific Coast States, or
any of the Rocky Mountain States, or
Missouri and Oklahoma or Wisconsin.
Should the Republican swing be great
enough to put Illinois. Ohio and Indiana
in the G. o. P. column on Election day,
doubtless it would be felt in other States.
Early in the Summer it appeared i'm
possible for the Republicans to take
Illinois or Indiana. They may not be
able to do it in November. The heavy
vote polled in the Democratic primary in
Illinois last May, much larger than the
vote in the Republican primary, was
taken as a sure indication that Presi-
dent Roosevelt would carry that State.
In Indiana the Republicans were fiat
on their backs. Their party rent with
factional troubles, looked to be hopelessly
begged down. But in recent weeks there
have been signs of a revival of Repub-
lican strength in both these States. All
of the l8 States mentioned in the list as
sufficient to elect Landon have been more
often Republican in the past than Demo-
cratic. If they revert to their old polit-
ical mooringS this year, the New Deal is
doomed to defeat Party lines are not so
closely drawn today as they were score
of years ago. There is huge so-called
independent vote that swings with the
wind of popular approval or disapproval.
That vote swung to the Republicans in
1928 and to the Democrats in 1892.
Where it will go this year is still to be
determined.
This week Gov Landon is to make a
swing into the States of the Middle West.
He speaks in Des Moines tomorrow and
later in Minneapolis. His campaign is
to be increasingly active during the next
few weeks. And he is expected to reveal
to the farmers in the corn and wheat
belt more fully just what he proposes
to do for agriculture in the event of his
election Despite the better prices for
farm produce and despite the flood of
government checks which have been
handed to the farmers Of Iowa, there are
reports from that State which indicate
the farm population Is not so favorable
to President Roosevelt as it has been in
the past Landon'S visit to Iowa, on q
campaign tour, may bring a definite
change in that State. the Republicans
hope. His last visit to the State was when
he recently attended the drought con-
ference in Des MoineS at the invitation
of President Roosevelt. Former Senator
Smith W. Brookhart of Iowa, campaign
ing now for the reelection of Roosevelt,
insists that Iowa will be found in the
Roosevelt column on Election day.
Brookhart sought to win the Republican
senatorial nomination this year, against
Senator Dickinson, who is up for re-
election, but was defeated. Later the
FarmerLabor party sought to have him
go on their ticket. but he declined and
preferred to back Roosevelt.
Immediately after the Maine election
last week President Roosevelt announced
at his press conference that he might
not make his projected campaign trip
across the continent in October, giving
as his reason that he feared to be so far
away from first e-Washington-
when conditions in Europe were threat
ening Had the President, the day after
the Maine election, which went Repub-
lican, announced he would campaign all
the way across the country, Republicans
would have seized upon the announce
ment as a clear indication that the
Democrats had become alarmed A few
days later. however, the President did
announce he would speak in Pittsburgh
and one or two other places. And if
there is need. undoubtedly the President
| will be found on the road good part
of october. The Democrats are count
| ing heavily on the President himself to
| win this national campaign.
The New Dealers have been able to
| line up the great majority of the heads
| of labor organizations for President
Roosevelt They insist that the Roose-
| velt sentiment runs all down through
| the ranks of labor organizations. This,
| however, is denied by Republicans who
| have been campaigning among the work.