U.S. REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT

Grey River Argus, 8 April 1948, Page 5

U.S. REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT

Wisconsin Primaries May Favour Strassen Over MacArthur (Rec. 9.40) NEW YORK. April 6 General MacArthur has appeared to have suffered an early setback in his candidacy for the Republican Party's Presidential nomination to-night, when first returns in the Wisconsin Republican Presidential Primary elections gave Mr Hald Stassen a clear lead over General MacArthur and Mr Thomas Dewey, Governor of New York. In 1042 of the 3138 precincts, Mr Stassen delegates polled 41.060 votes, when the MacArthur delegates polled 31,824 votes and the Dewey delegates polled 21,172 votes. The poll Aflicials pointed out that the returns, thus far, were largely from rural precincts, where strong support for Mr Stassen had been ex : pected. Unless there is a sharp reversal of the trend, however, Governor Dewey appears unlikely to win a single delegate. The Wisconsin Primary is regarded as providing a distinct indication of the three men's capacity to win votes. There are twent>-seven delegates to be elected for the Republican Party’s National Convention, where each will be pledged to vote for either Mr Dewey or General MacArthur. It was in the Wisconsin Primary in 1944 that Mr Wendell Wilkie failed to win a single delegate whereas Mr Dewey won seventeen, Mr Stassen four and General MacArthur three. General MacArthur was not then a declared candidate. His backers, however, campaigned for him despite his definite statement that nothing at that time would distract him from his military duties. Mr Wilkie withdrew from the the Presidential race the next day. Mr Dewey, however, has stated that. Tegardfess of the Wisconsin re : suit, he will continue ills Presidential campaign. General MacArthur’s backers have conducted a high pressure drive in Wisconsin, even to the extent of broadcasting a recording c£ his speech at the Japanese surrender aboard the U.S.S. “Missouri.” The election has stirred up such interest in Wisconsin that the poll officials expect twice as many voters as at the last election.