Evening star., 1954-09-14
The Political Mill
The Political Mill
Both Parties Wooinq
Marginal Area Voters
Republicans Are Counting
On Eisenhower's Effort
By Gould Lincoln

On Eisenhower's Effort
By Gould Lincoln
Rarely before have so many and so
elaborate campaign plans been made to
win Congress in midterm presidential
year. Republicans and Democrats
alike regard victory on November 2 as
tremendously important, not only
because of the issues involved, but
because Of the boost it may give
for party victory in the 1856 race
for President and control of the Federal
Government.
President Eisenhower himself is
taking to the stump in an al
most unprecedented degree-not so
much for individual candidates, but for
his program and Republican majority
in both houses of Congress to help
complete that program. Members of
the cabinet, as well as the G. o. P.
candidates for Senate and House and
for State Office, will be out beating the
bushes.
The Democrats will be equally active.
Adlai Stevenson, titular head of the
party, will campaign all over the
country. Former President Truman is
expected to attend the coming Demo-
cratic conference in indianapolis
Friday and Saturday and to take as
much part as he can in the campaign,
limited only by the fact he underwent
serious operation during the summer.
Concentrating Efforts.
Both sides are concentrating on the
So-called marginal and doubtful
congressional districts. The yardstick
for measuring marginal diStrict-an
arbitrary measures victory by either
side by SIS per cent or less of the total
vote cast in the last election. Demo-
Gratis and Republicans agree that there
are 80 such districts. The Congress
sional Quarterly. in survey of it's
own, puts the number of such districts
at 103, located in 80 States. 1t divides
these districts into two categories-
doubtful" where the outcome is a
tossup. and fighting" where the party
now in control of the districts has the
better chance of holding the seat but
has real fight on its hands. Going a
step further, the Congressional Quar-
terly states there are 80 doubtful"
districts, q Republican and IL Demo-
cratic, and 50 fighting" districts, 80
Republican and 26 Democratic. On the
face of these estimates, the chances
appear to favor the Democratic victory.
The Republicans maintain, however.
that generalizations-such as that al
most invariably the party in control of
the Government in Washington has
lost congressional seats in a midterm
election-do not fit the present picture.
They see the elections being won or
lost, so far as control of the 84th Con-
greSS is concerned, in relatively small
number of congressional districts and
States. They refer also to the fact
that Gen. Eisenhower in 1852 carried
297 congressional districts, while the
Republicans won only 221. They be-
lieVe that the Democrats that year got
all the House seats they can expect to
win in the coming election; that there
were very few Eisenhower "coattail"
riders who won election that year, while
some of the Democratic congressional
candidates. well intrenched after years
of service. were able to hang on.
Both Parties See Victory.
Leaders in both parties are claiming
victory today. For example. Represent
ative KlrWan of Ohio, chairman of the
Democratic Congressional Committee,
has said that Democratic gains in the
House will range up to 60, and Repre-
sentative Sam Rayburn of Texas, for
mer Speaker and now minority leader
of the House, puts his partys probable
gains from 20 to 40 seats. Speaker Joe
Martin takes a different view, insisting
will ,ol off
20 to 80 seats in the House. Unless
there should be drastic changes in the
economic situation in this country-or
the country should become involved in
a shooting war-the chances are that
neither side is likely to control the
House by wide margin-indeed, that
margin of control will be narrow either
way.
The Congressional Quarterly points
out that IS Representatives are already
assured election-because they have no
opposition. OF these 83 are Democrats
and two are Republicans. The great
bulk of the Democrats are in the
Southern or border States. Two are in
Massachusetts and two in California.
The two Republicans who have no op-
ponents are Mrs. Edith Nourse Rogers
of Massachusetts, and Howard H. Baker
Of Tennessee. To win control of the
House by bare majority, 218 seats
are necessary.
Gen. Eisenhower is stalking a lot in
his campaign for a Republican Con-
gress. He feels, however, that victory is
essential and he is going to the mat.
no matter what the effect may be on his
own future The Pepllhlicopc oro
counting greatly on his effort and also
on the drive which is being made in
marginal districts by the Citizens for
Eisenhower Committees. If the COM
mittees swing 1000 votes in district,
1t might mean victory there.
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