The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-06-05

Republican voters outnumber Democratic more than 3 to in Q new Literary Digest "pre-conven- ton" poll of Binghamton, N. Y. The city's slight majority for Roosevelt over Hoover in 1884 was closely fore- cast by the magazines 1882 Pres idential Poll.
 Secret ballots were mailed within the past two weeks, The Literary Digest states, to the entire 1850 reg istration list of 27,3e7 In Bngnam- ion from which 3,627 ballots have been returned and counted in the current tabulation.
 The ballots ask the voters to sig nify their choice of Democratic, Re. publican, Socialist, or other party choice and also to mark for whom they voted in the last Presidential election to reveal a significant drilt from one party to another"
 Landon receives 779 per cent Of the 2,208 Republican total vote ana Roosevelt is given all but 20 or the 1907 Democratic votes recorded.
 Borah is second choice among Re- publican candidates with 10.6 per cent of his party's vote and Hoover third, with 50 per cent. ..
 Thomas gets all but of the 57 votes cast for the Socialist party in the poll. .,
 The magazine states that the poll was conducted reveal any possible pre-convention political trends in one typical city in Q doubtful State and presents it's poll findings "as usuap without comment and with out interpretation.
 A statement by the poll managers notes that in the light of their past experiences the present returns from Binghamton are about three-quar- terS complete.
 Those poll voters who signified they were under age in 1032, repre- senting 2.2 per cent of the total votes recorded, are divided exactly even between the Democratic and Republican Presidential choices.
 Tt is too carly" The Literary Di- gest states in its June 6 issue, ito discover 6 definite answer to the question of who would be elected President today. But 1t is not too early to make interesting tests on how the breeze is blowing.
 "The Literary Digest oiled its ia. nous poll machinery to seek clue. With the regularity of postman bringing bills the first of the month this machine of augury has accu- rately forecast the winner of the quadrennial Presidential elections since the World War.
 "The Harding landslide was fore. Bhadowed in 1920. The Coolidge walk-away in 1924. The first crack up of the Solid South in 1928 for the first time since the War Between the States, contrary to the predic. tions of many leading political dop- esters and commentators who pre- saged otherwise. Then the popular vote in the Roosevelt Hoover cam paign four years ago was forecast with over 90 per cent accuracy.
 This year the poll managers de- cided that possible political trend might be ascertatned prior to the conventions.
 "The City of Binghamton, New York, was selected for the poll test because: 1.-the entire 1930 regis tered voters list was readily avail able: 2-New York, containing the largest unit of electoral votes, has been widely considered as a doubt full state since Governor Lehman's published decision not to run for election again; 3-Binghamton is a typical upstate city; 1.-The Literary Digest poll was notably accurate in forecasting close election there in 1882: and 5-poll and official returns of prior votings were available.
 "The 1882 Presidential poll showed that the Roosevelt Hoover vote in Binghamton would be split 51.9 per cent for Roosevelt and 48.l per cent for Hoover. Roosevelt received 50.2 per cent of the official vote and Hoover 49g8 per cent revealing @ slight underestimate of Republican strength in the poll forecast.
 Tn the late spring of 1884, when the President had been in office for more than a year, a poll upon the popularity of his New Deal was con- ducted. Tn answer to the questions. DO you approve on the whole the acts and policies of Roosevelt'S first year? 55.5 per cent of the voters in Binghamton answered yes and AS per cent voted no.
 Some eighteen months later, in the winter of 1895, the same lists of voters were asked, Do you now ap- prove the acts and policies of the Roosevelt New Deal to date?' The response was 23.l per cent affrma- tive and T0.o per cent negative.
 within the past fortnight all oi the registered voters in Binghamtou were sent Literary Digest secret ba.- lost asking them t0 signify for which party and for what candidate they would vote. They were also asked t0 identify how they voted in i031 co that deductions could be made