Evening star., 1940-10-17
Tight Illinois Race
Seen in Indicated
Swing 10 WiNkie
Stote 6. O. P. JubiIont,
Democrats Dour; 50. 900
Victory a Possibility
Continued From First Page.)

this year it was admitted by persons
who keep in close touch with senti-
ment among the farmers that the
New Deal was no longer as popular
as 1t had been.
Also there Is very sizeable
Roosevelt detection among Demo-
Gratis. This was demonstrated in
the primary held here last spring,
when Vice President Garner rolled
up a good sized vote. The Garner
ties in this State made it an anti
third term fight strictly. The Presi-
dent won with huge lead over Mr..
Garner. But the Vice President had
more than 10000 votes, about l6
per cent of the total vote cast in
the presidential primary. 1t is not
claimed that all the Garner Demo-
Gratis will vote against Mr.. Roosevelt
now, although the indications are
a considerable number of them will,
and others may not vote at all IN
the presidential contest.
Poll Indicates Willkie Victory.
The Chicago Tribune is conduct
ing poll among the voters in Chi
cago, the towns in Cook County out
side of Chicago and "downstate"
cities. The result so far, as pub
lished today, are as follows: Total
vote cast, 32,980, of which 1868
were taken in Chicago, 6,567 in Cook
County towns and l0745 in down.
state cities. Roosevelt's percentage
of the vote in Chicago is 59.8, Will
kies percentage of the vote In down.
state cities was 598 and WILKES
percentage of the vote in Cook
County towns was 62.5. Chicago
casts about 43 per cent Of the total
vote in Illinois. On the basis Of the
poll so far taken, Mr.. Willkie would
have a slight advantage over Mr..
Roosevelt-approximately $4,000 in
the whole State-a very narrow mar
gin in Illinois.
Polls taken by the Kelly-Nash
machine workers show about the
same results for Chicago, but some
what better for Roosevelt doWnstate.
Mayor Kelly insists, however, that
the State will go for President
Roosevelt, and that Cook County
will give a lead of 100000 or more.
If it does, it will be too great for
downstate to overcome. Four years
ago, Cook County went for the
President by $4,000.
The Democrats are counting heav-
lily on the labor vote in Chicago and
other industrial centers in Illinois.
This goes for railroad labor and for
organized labor generally. The
claims of the Democrats regarding
railroad labor run all the way from
80 per cent to sS per cent.
Red Caps Disgruntled.
Benjamin Busch, secretary of the
Railway Employees Union Labor
Club of Illinois, insisted that railway
labor is about SO per cent solid for
Roosevelt, adding that there are
about 100000 railway workers in
the State. The red caps" union
also is strongly for Roosevelt, Sena-
tor Thomas said. The red caps have
been dissatisfied with the new sys-
tenn under which they must collect
10 cents for each piece of baggage
carried and then the railroad COM
panies take 80 cents an hour from
those earnings, to comply with the
minimum wage requirements. DEM
ocratic Leader Senator Barkley re-
Gently introduced a resolution di-
recting the Wage and Hour Division
Ito investigate working and wage
conditions among the red caps OF
the Nation" The claim is that many
of them have been laid of because
they did not bring in enough to pay
for their 30-cent-an-hour wage.
Illinois is a real melting pot
particularly Chicago, where many
races and nationalities are repre-
sented by large groups. The largest
group of all is that of German blood.
The last census gave 604,021 as the
number of native born of German
parentage and 1O9,605 as German
born, a total of 794,626. This does
not take into consideration those
of German blood who go back three
VI 1Oul dblOllo. IL 10 SCAASA oAAy
believed that the great bulk of the
voters of German blood will support
Mr.. Willkie and vote against Mr..
Roosevelt. Some of them told me
they did not like the idea that
man of German blood-as is Mr..
Willkie-should be barred from the
presidency because of his ancestry.
1t has been estimated that as high
as 80 or 80 per cent Of this vote
will go Republican, although the
German-Americans in 1896 largely
supported President Roosevelt.
Italian Americans a Puzzle.
What the Italian-Americans will
do is another conundrum. There
are 271 900 listed in the last census
in Illinois. The Democrats hope to
win many of them back to the
Roosevelt standard by bringing
Mayor La Guardia of New York
into the State to speak for the
President.