I worked for Nixon-Lodge Campaign in 1959-60, and until all the dead/illegal/bussed-in Cook Cty votes were counted for JFK, we were comfortably ahead in Illinois. Somehow, Mayor Daley always managed to come-up with just enough votes to win every election for decades. Not much has changed. “The Machine” there, is quite corrupt, criminal and formidable.
That was a different Daley; and this time, Obama fired his son (William), or at least made being Chief of Staff so unpleasant that he quit.
Very admirable for your hard work and recollections.
In 1968 Nixon refused to release Lake County until Daley reported the entirety of Cook County - wasn’t going to get burned twice.
Understandably in 1968 in the midst of a see-saw election night Pat Nixon refused to believe that her husband carried Illinois. It was only when she was completely assured that the Daley machine could not and would not overtake the GOP votes in Lake County did she cry with relief and happiness.
Julie Nixon Eisenhower has written a magnificient book about her mother.
“Somehow, Mayor Daley always managed to come-up with just enough votes to win every election for decades.”
But not too many votes, right? Didn’t Joe Kennedy ask JFK something like, “What? Did you think I was going to buy you a landslide?” referring to Mayor Daley, the mafia, the unions, and the convenient win.
That could be stopped if the out of Chicago voting districts
would simply demand that Chicago announced its votes before the out of Chicago districts announced theirs. Chicago districts wouldn’t know how many votes they would have to “manufacture”.
That could also be done in Pennsylvania in regards to Philly!
Brady and Kirk cleaned clock outside of Cook, yet Brady “lost” to an unpopular louse after leading in the polls and Kirk barley beat a weak joke of a democrat and this in a GOP year. It’s sickening, both should have won easily. This underscores the difficulty we have trying to carry the state in a Presidential election.
Philly to NJ would be great for PA, horrible for NJ, which would become another Maryland.