Pennsylvania election roundup; after the count
PHILADELPHIA ( AP ) Democrat Milton J. Shapp
became the first Pennsylvania governor in 99 years to succeed
rie tn
hi self and Republican Sen. Richard S. Schweiker survived a
emocriatic onslaught in yesterday's election.
I Shapp, a 62-year-old millionaire electronics engineer, called
his 307.000-vote victory carved out of Democratic
Philadelphia and its normally Republican suburbs -7 "a really
great night for the Democrats.- _
Democrats regained control of the state House, t in GOP
hands the past tw•o years, and lengthened their margin in the
State Senate to the biggest in 36 years
The' Congress races were a standoff, remaining 14
Democrats and 11 Republicans, with some changes in per
sonnel
Schweiker. 48. said his triumph for a second six-year term
was the result of an unprecedented share of the black vote and
the support of working men and women. He referred to the fact
he was one of the few Republicans in America to have AFL
CIO endorsement.
"In short we have forced a new coalition for responsible and
responsive government." Schweiker told cheering supporters.
"It's a new coalition based not on the politics of personalities
buton the politics of substance "
Schw•eiker won by 254.000 over Peter F. Flaherty, the
Democratic mayor of Pittsburgh. surpassing his 222,000
rrtajority of 1968
Sliapp defeated Drew Lewis, a professional party politician
making his first run for public office, but fell short of his
54k).000-vote landslide four years ago.
Elections '74
Identical voting trends
elect Shapp, Schweiker
PHILADELPHIA (AP) Democratic Gov.
Milton Shapp and Republican U.S. Sen.
Richard Schweiker were swept into office by
voting trends that look almost identical.
De`gpite their party diffetences, both can
didates scored surprisingly well in are that
previously were awarded to the opposition:
Shapp carried Delaware County, a GOP
stronghold; and Schweiker pulled 62 per cent
AP news analysis
'of his victory margin from the five southeast
counties, including. Philadelphia which has
the state's strongest Democratic machine.
In the northeastern counties, where
Republican Drew Lewis tried to convince
voters that Shapp did noilhelp them enough
during Tropical Storm Agnes, the governor
carried the area by 12,000 votes.
And in Lackawanna County, a Democrat
labor stronghold, Schweiker beat his op
ponent Peter Flaherty by almost 10,000 votes.
Schweiker, of course, campaigned with the
endorsement of the state AFL-CIO, not the
kind of backing commonly connected with
Republican candidates.
Instead of dodging the salvos fired from the
House Committee investigating state corrup
tion and his 1970 campaign finances, the
governor marched in front of the television
cameras and gave three days of testimony
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Lewis, unknown to the public,when he started 16 months ago,
was consumed by the Watergate firestorm that wiped out a
score of state Republicans in the State House and Senate.
He had centered his attack on Shapp's alleged tolerance of
corrupt practices. Shapp responded with an accusation of
"witchhunt."
Schweiker survived because he divorced himself early from
Watergate and was among the first to call for President
Nixon's resignation. The Liberal, pro-labor image Schweiker
built made massive ballot splitters of Democrats and in
dependents and it paid off handsomely in the big
Democratic cities of Philadelphia, Scranton, Erie, Wilkes-
Barre, Reading and Allentown.
It was especially important in Philadelphia where Shapp
piled up a 223,000-vote advantage, the largest ever for a guber
natorial•candidate.
Schweiker neutralized Flaherty in Philadelphia, losing by
3,300, a startling improvement over 1968 when he lost the city
by 195,000.
"Our close vote in Philadelphia was the modern day record
for a Republican candidate," Schweikpr said.
About 63 per cent of the 5.5 million registered voters a
total of 3.3 million went to the 9,618 polling places on a
gloomy day dampened by occasional showers. It was the
smallest turnout since 1942 when 2.5 million, or 55 per cent,
participated in the electoral process but exceeded the 49 per
cent predicted by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Lewis was admittedly disappointed at his showing after
predicting he'd win by 100,000. "We still have a job ahead to
that all but reduced the committee probe to a
witchhunt.
Both Sl)app and Schweikerrdid poorly in
Pennsylvania's southwesterri counties
Fayette,? Allegheny, Washington, West
morelandand Beaver.
But Schweiker's opponent is mayor of
Pittsburgh, the region's largest city; and
Shapp's opponent borrowed almost half of his
campaign money from Richard Mellon
Scaife, heir to one of the area's largest for
tunes.
In some ways, Shapp and Schweiker are
viewed as friends of the working - man.
Schweiker had his AFL-CIO backing as well
as a strong record for pushing through bene
fits for victims of "black lung disease."
Shapp, on he other hand, allied himself most
ly with the workers last winter when he
helped settle the truck drivers strike.
Republicans who were worried about voter
apathy as an outgrowth of Watergate found
that the problem was not a low turnout as
some had feared, but rather a definite trend
toward putting Democrats in office.
The U.S. Census Bureau had predicted that
49 per cent of the state's registered voters
would cast ballots. But about 62 per cent
voted. That's not a figure to be proud of, it
represents the lowest vote cast in a guber
natorial election since World War 11.
MEM
Demos unseat State GOP'S
PHILADELPHIA (AP)
Democrats recaptured the
state House- yesterday and
helped themselves to their
biggest Senate majority since
the Depression.
Unofficial figures gave
Democrats 29 of the 50 Senate
seats, up from the current 27-
In the House, Democrats
turned a 108-95 deficit into a
114-88 advantage with one seat
undecided. Democrats took
over 20 Republican districts
while the GOP could win only
one Democratic seat.
The Democratic margins
will give Gov. Shapp- the op
portunity to push through
legislative programs which of
ten- were stymied by the
Republican House. It was an
all-Democrat legislature
which passed the state's in
come tax in 1971, although
some Republicans supported
the levy.
Republican incumbents lost,
but po Democrat suffered the
same fate.
Among the losers were
Donald W. Fox, Republican
caucus. chairman; H. Francis
Kennedy, chairman of the In the Senate, Democratic
Agriculture and Dairy In- a challenger Edward M. Early
dustries Committee; and upset Republican Robert D.
Stanley Kester, a 10-year GOP Fleming, a legislator since
stalwart from Delaware 1939. Until Early, a House
County and chairman of the member, announced for the
Liquor Control Committee Senate, he and Fleming rode
which investigated Shapp ad- to Harrisburg together in the
ministration liquor practices. same car pool.
do," Lewis told a subdued group of supporters-. "We have a
major rebuilding job in the Republican Party and I'd like to be
a part Of that. I think we need• a two party system. I feel it's
necessary to get more people involved in politics."
Flaherty, boasting he was a pilor man's candidate, said his
campaign cost around $150,000, cheapest of any major state
wide candidate in modern Pennsylvania history.
SchWeiker spent around $700,000 while Lewis, and, Shapp
each had a $1.5 million campaign budget.
Flaherty blamed his lack of cash and what he said was
failure of newspapers and television to give him adequate
coverage as major factors in his defeat.
Not since 1875, when Republican John F. Hartranft was e
lected to a second term, has any governor succeeded himself.
Shapp was the first allowed to try because of the`l96B con
stitutional amendment.
Democrats had a net gain of at least 19 state House seats,
giving them a minimum lead in the lower chamber of 114-87. In
the current legislature, which expires Nov. 30, Republicans
have a 108-95 advantage.
Fifteen Republican incumbents lost. No Democrats lost.
In the Senate Democrats increased their margin to 29-21, a
gain - of two, with the \ major surprises in Delaware County
where a Democrat was elected to replace retiring Sen. Clyde
R. Dengler, 75, and in Allegheny County where voters retired
GOP Sen. Robert Fleming.
In the Congress fights, Democrats won the Delaware County
district for the first time in history but lost their 20-year hold
on Frank Clark's seat in western Pennsylvania.
Democrats attempted to
make the House elections a
referendum on the conduct of
GOP House investigating
committees, including
Kester's. Their main target
was the committee on con
tract practices which tried to
convince voters the Shapp ad
ministration was corrupt.
The panel delved into Gov.
Shapp's 1970 campaign finan
cing, his firing of al cabinet
member, his business
dealings and forced political
contributions. Gov. Shapp ap
peared voluntarily before the
panel for three days and
politicians from both parties
said his performance blunted
the GOP attack.
Six members of the contract
committee headed by Rep.
Patrick Gleason, R-Cambria
won re-election. A seventh
lost in the May primary
Four of the Republican
losses were in Delaware Coun
ty, a onetime GOP stronghold
which went Democratic in
several races, including the
governor's contest.
The normally Republican from both parties had given last month. was trounced by
26th senatorial district of Sweeney almost no chance of H. Craig Lewis; - a 30-year-old
Delaware County also went winning. Democratic attorney from
Democratic, with John J. Incumbent Republican Feasterville, Bucks County.
Sweeney squeezing by F. Robert A.Rovner, who was in- The district extends into
Joseph Loeper Jr. Insiders dieted on extortion charges Philadelphia.
a • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •.,. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • se
•
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The Daily Collegian Thursday, November 7. 1974-
The senior Congressional Republican, Herman T.
Schneebeli, barely survived the debacle, narrowly winning an
eighth term over Democrat Peter Wambach, a Harrisburg
broadcaster.
The Rev. Robert W. Edgar, Methodigt chaplain at Drexel
University, knocked off Delaware County Dist. Atty. Stephen
McEwen. the organization candidate who had ousted in
cumbent Republican Lawrence Williams in a bitter primary.
Edgar tagged the GOP organization with corruption to win
the 7th District seat.
• Clark was turned out by Republican Gary Myers in the 25th
District that embraces Butler, Lawrence, Beaver and parts of
Allegheny counties.
Iniother important Congressional fights
Democrat John Murtha easily defeated Republican Harry
M. Fox in western Pennsylvania's 12th district. Murtha last
February had defeated Fox by 100 votes in a special election
Republican William Goodling was elected to succeed his
father, George, who retired after six terms.
And Republican Richard Schnlze• captured the seat held by
retiring John Ware, also a Republican.
• Campaign spending was an issue only in the senate race.
•
Four years ago Shapp spent nearly $2 million of his °on
money in wresting the state-house from the Republicans who
then denounced him for allegedly buying the election.
This time Shapp said he contributed only $15,000.
The Shapp majority is the fifth largest in gubernatorial elec
tion history.
To Remember . . .
••• • •
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