Evening star., 1942-10-06
By GOULD LINCOLN,
Star STAFF Writer.

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 6.-The po-
litical situation in Minnesota today
has all the markings of a crazy
quilt. The two major parties
Republican and Farmer-Labor-a
split by their own particular hates.
There are on the COP side the
Stassen-Ball Republicans and the
anti-Stassen-Ban Republicans. Mr..
Stassen is Governor and Mr.. Ball,
United States Senator, both up for
reelection
On the Farmer-Labor side, HAL
mar Petersen, the party's candidate
for Governor, heads the so-called
right wing, and Former Gov. Elmer
A. Benson, the candidate for Sena-
tor. heads the left.
The Democrats, for years a lowly
minority in this State, are hopefully
looking for crushing defeat of the
Farmer Labor party in the coming
elections. Some of them believe,
as do the Republicans, that if the
Farmer Labor outfit fails this year
to elect a major officer, either Gov
ernor or Senator, the party will
disintegrate. If that should hap
pen, the Democrats feel that they
would once again become a major
party, and that thousands of these
who now vote the Farmer-Labor
ticket would join up with them.
1t Is no secret that thousands of
Democrats in the September pri-
mary elections voted for Gov. Stas-
sen and Senator Ball, supporting
them on their records of interna-
tional affairs. Both threw over the
old Republican isolationist stand
and, like Wendell L. Willkie, the
COP standard bearer two years
ago, supported an-out aid to the
nations opposing Hitler, and voting
national defense measures.
Strong Election Law.
Under curious election law here,
when a party candidate Is unop-
posed, he is regarded as nominated
and his name does not have to ap-
pear on the primary ballot, which
is a single ballot containing the
names of all party candidates who
have opposition. The Democrats,
therefore, found it easy to go into
the voting booth and plunk for Gov.
Stassen and Senator Ball, since their
own party selections for Governor
and Senator did not have their
names on the ballot at all. In the
coming general election, it Will be
different.
John D. Sullivan is the Democratic
candidate for Governor and Ed
Murphy the candidate for Senator
Many OF the Democrats will stick to
them in the election, but others like
ly will give their support again to
Gov. Stassen and Senator Ball,
knowing well that neither Mr.. Sui
livan nor Mr.. Murphy has a slightest
chance of winning.
Gov. Stassen and Senator Ball
won in the Republican primary
handily enough, although two anti
Stassen Republicans rolled up a big
vote and three anti-Bal Republicans
did the same in the senatorial NOM
ination race.
Entry Complicates Race.
The situation has been materially
complicated by the recent entry of
Martin A. Nelson as an independent
Republican in the senatorial race.
Mr.. Nelson was the leading anti
Stassen candidate in the guberna-
torial primary. He decided to try for
the Senate as an independent Re-
publican rather than for the gov
ernorship.
There are two reasons for the
switch. The first is that Senator
Ball was considered a more vulnera-
BILE opponent, and the second, that
there seemed some chance OF lining
up with the Farmer-Labor candidate
for Governor to defeat Gov. Stassen.
Indeed, that seems to be the present
strategy Of the anti-Stassen, anti
Ball Republicans. II they can make
this play successfully, they hope to
defeat both Gov. stassen and sena-
tor Ball.
The chances are, however, that
both Gov. Stassen and Senator Ball
will win in the end.
The Republican opposition to Gov.
Stassen, and to Senator Ball, whom
the Governor appointed to MI the
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