Evening star., 1940-04-25
PENNSYLVANIA Primary


Joseph F. Guffey by Pennsylvania
Democrats is not surprising. He was
opposed, it is true, by Chairman
David L. Lawrence of the Demo-
cratic State Committee and by a
majority of the leaders of the State
organization. Their candidate, Wal
ter A. Jones, chairman of the Phila-
delphia Turnpike Commission, was,
however, virtually an unknown. Mr..
Guffey, on the other hand, has been
in Democratic politics in Pennsyl-
vania for more than generation.
He was the first Democrat to repre-
sent the Keystone State in the
Senate for almost half century.
What will happen to Mr. Guffey
in the November election-when he
must run against the Republican
nominee for the Senate, Jay Cooke,
a great grandson of the Union finan-
cier of the Civil Warts another
question. The desperate fight in the
Democratic primary may be a fore
runner of Democratic disaster in the
fall. Just such a contest was waged
in the Democratic primary of 1888
with Senator Guffey battling the
State organization headed by Mr..
Lawrence. The results in that elec-
ton speak for themselves. Not only
did the Republicans win the guber-
material election by a substantial
margin, but they also reelected
Senator James j. Davis, who was
pitted against the then Governor
George Earle, who had been sue
cessful in l934-on the same ticket
with Senator Guffey.
There was little in the Pennsyl-
vania primary Tuesday to encourage
the Democrats. The Republicans
polled in their primary a larger vote
by approximately two hundred and
seventy-five thousand. Primary votes
are not by any means conclusive evi-
dence of what will happen in the
general election. But it is entirely
clear that if the Democrats had
polled more votes than the Repub-
licans they would now be claiming
victory in November.
The hope of Senator Guffey and
other Democratic leaders in Penn
sylvania is that President Roosevelt
will say Eyes" and run for re-elec-
ton. They look upon the President
as the strongest candidate who
could be named to oppose a Repub-
lican in Pennsylvania-and they
devoutly hope they will be able to
ride along on his coattails to triumph.
Mr.. Roosevelt was voted for in
the presidential preferential primary
in Pennsylvania, the only entry on
either the Republican or Democratic
side. Running unopposed, the Presi-
dent rolled up bigger vote than any
of the Democratic candidates for the
senatorial nomination. But his vote
fell short of the combined total vote
for Guffey, Jones and McNair,
former Mayor of Pittsburgh, the
third candidate in the Senate pri-
mary, by couple of hundred thou
sand votes. 1t was of interest, how
ever, that the President received
several hundred "write-in" votes in
the Republican primary.
The Republicans placed no candi-
dates in the presidential preferential
primary. A space was left vacant,
however, for any of the voters in the
primary to write in names of their
choices for the presidential nomina-
ton. Thousands of Republicans took
advantage of the opportunity and
wrote in the name of Thomas E.
Dewey, racket-busting New York dis
trict attorney. Indeed, the New
Yorker received more than six to one
of these votes over Governor James,
Pennsylvania so-called favorite-son
candidate. Mr.. Dewey refrained
from entering the primary because
he has made it rule not to go into
those primary States having favorite-
son candidates for the Republican
presidential nomination.
1t seems clear, however, that Mr..
Dewey makes the same appeal to
voters in the Keystone State that he
made in the Illinois, Wisconsin and
Nebraska primaries. The "write-in"
votes for his two principal opponents
for presidential nomination, Senator
Taft of Ohio and Senator Vanden-
berg of Michigan, were almost infini-
tesimal when compared to the Dewey
vote. The Pennsylvania delegation,
under the direction of the State
leaders, is to go to the Republican
National Convention uninstructed. 1t
has been expected that on the first
ballot, at least, the State will cast its
delegate votes for Governor James.
Whether the leaders will be able to
keep the delegates in line, remains
to be seen, particularly if there con-
tinues swelling Dewey tide. Usually
the Pennsylvania Republican dele
cations to national conventions have
proved amenable to reason-ad-
vanced by the leaders.
While it is difficult to say with Ger