United States Senate election in Missouri, 1934

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United States Senate election in Missouri, 1934
Flag of Missouri.svg
  1928 November 6, 1934 1940  

  Harry S Truman, bw half-length photo portrait, facing front, 1945-crop.jpg RoscoeCPatterson.jpg
Nominee Harry S. Truman Roscoe C. Patterson
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote787,110 524,954
Percentage59.55% 39.71%

Missouri Senatorial Election Results by County, 1934.svg

County results

U.S. Senator before election

Roscoe C. Patterson
Republican

Elected U.S. Senator

Harry S. Truman
Democratic

The 1934 United States Senate election in Missouri was held on November 6, 1934. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Roscoe Patterson, first elected in 1928, sought reelection to a second term. He was defeated by the Democratic nominee, future President of the United States Harry Truman. [1]

Republican Party (United States) Major political party in the United States

The Republican Party, also referred to as the GOP, is one of the two major political parties in the United States; the other is its historic rival, the Democratic Party.

Roscoe C. Patterson American politician

Roscoe Conkling Patterson was a United States Representative and Senator from Missouri.

Democratic Party (United States) political party in the United States

The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Democratic Party was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active political party.

Contents

Candidates

Democratic

Harry S. Truman 33rd president of the United States

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd president of the United States from 1945 to 1953, succeeding upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt after serving as vice president. He implemented the Marshall Plan to rebuild the economy of Western Europe, and established the Truman Doctrine and NATO.

Jackson County, Missouri County in the United States

Jackson County is a county located in the western portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2010 census, the population was 674,158. making it the second-most populous county in the state. Although Independence retains its status as the original county seat, Kansas City serves as a second county seat and the center of county government. The county was organized December 15, 1826, and named for President Andrew Jackson. Jackson County is the central county of the Kansas City metropolitan area.

John J. Cochran American politician

John Joseph Cochran was a U.S. Representative from Missouri.

Republican

Campaign

Harry Truman, having served as a judge, expressed an interest in running for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1934, but political boss Tom Pendergast had already selected another candidate for that race. After four other potential candidates had declined to run, Pendergast ultimately approached Truman to discuss a possible run for the United States Senate, to Truman's surprise. Truman, with backing from Pendergast, entered the Senate race. Truman said he would not, if elected, dictate to anyone[ clarification needed ], to the dismay of anti-Pendergast U.S. Senator Bennett Champ Clark. [5]

Political boss person who controls a unit of a political party, although he/she may not hold political office

In politics, a boss is a person who controls a unit of a political party, although they may not necessarily hold political office. Numerous officeholders in that unit are subordinate to the single boss in party affairs. Each party in the same ward or city may have its own boss; that is, the Republican boss of Ward 7 controls Republican politics, while the Democratic boss controls the Democratic party there. Reformers sometimes allege that political bosses are likely guilty of corruption. Bosses may base their power on control of a large number of votes. When the party wins, they typically control appointments in their unit, and have a voice at the higher levels. They do not necessarily hold public office themselves; most historical bosses did not, at least during the times of their greatest influence.

Tom Pendergast American politician

Thomas Joseph Pendergast was an American political boss who controlled Kansas City and Jackson County, Missouri from 1925 to 1939. Though only briefly holding elected office as an alderman himself, "T.J." Pendergast, in his capacity as Chairman of the Jackson County Democratic Party, was able to use his large network of family and friends to help elect politicians and hand out government contracts and patronage jobs. He became wealthy in the process, although his addiction to gambling, especially horse racing, later led to a large accumulation of personal debts. In 1939, he was convicted of income tax evasion and served 15 months in a Federal prison. The Pendergast organization helped launch the political career of Harry S. Truman, a fact that caused Truman's enemies to dub him "The Senator from Pendergast."

Truman waged a statewide campaign and eventually won the largely three-way Democratic primary on August 7, 1934, by a significant margin, defeating U.S. Representatives John Cochran and Jacob Milligan. [3] After winning the Democratic nomination, Truman defeated Republican opponent and incumbent U.S. Senator Roscoe Patterson by a landslide margin of about 20% of the vote. [6] [7]

Jacob L. Milligan Recipient of the Purple Heart medal

Jacob Le Roy Milligan was a United States Representative from Missouri.

Results

Missouri United States Senate election, 1934 [1] [6]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Harry S. Truman 787,11059.55
Republican Roscoe C. Patterson (incumbent) 524,954 39.71
Socialist W.C. Meyer 9,010 0.68
Communist Frank Brown 418 0.03
Socialist Labor William Wesley Cox 384 0.03
Total votes1,321,876100

See also

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Maurice Morton Milligan, a U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, is most famous for the successful 1939 prosecution of Kansas City boss Tom Pendergast.

Manvel Humphrey Davis was a member of the Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri State Senate. Davis, a Republican, challenged Harry S. Truman in the United States Senate elections, 1940 for re-election after the collapse of the big city machine of Truman’s patron Tom Pendergast.

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References

  1. 1 2 Dubin, Michael J. (1998). United States congressional elections, 1788-1997 : the official results of the elections of the 1st through 105th congresses. Jefferson, NC [u.a.]: McFarland. ISBN   0786402830.
  2. "TRUMAN, Harry S., (1884 - 1972)". Biographical Directory of the U.S Congress. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "MO US Senate - D Primary". OurCampaigns. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  4. "PATTERSON, Roscoe Conklin, (1876 - 1954)". Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  5. "Harry S. Truman, 34th Vice President (1945)". United States Senate. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  6. 1 2 "MO US Senate". OurCampaigns. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  7. "Life Before the Presidency". American President: A Reference Resource. University of Virginia. Retrieved 13 June 2012.