Allegan County, Michigan - Politics in Allegan' County, 1907

Wlien Allegan county became an independent political division there were two national parties in the field - tJie Democrats and the Whigs. To follow the lines of party sentiment as it was manifested in the selection of county officials would be an impossible task. Considerations of fitness for office and personal popularity have ahvavs broken partisan lines. Notwithstanding that party feeling was shown with more passion and more uncompromisingly fift>' and seventy years ago than now, popidation was less and people knew their neighbors perhaps better than they do now. So that while the party banner counted for more then than now, this fact was neutralized in local politics by personal considerations.

Before proceeding with the details of county politics it is proper to state the remarkable difference in spirit between political contests of this day and those of fifty years ago. At the fall election of 1906, when fetleral, state and coimty officers were chosen, so far as could be observed there was a notable absence of excitement or tension among the people, local business went on as usual, and if the surface of political sentiment was disturbed at all it was due to the remarkable contest in New York state rather than at home. Of old-time ralHes and political mass meetings there were none, and the few meetings held about the county were, as a rule, poorly attended and unenthusiastic.

Going back lialf a century, although twenty-five years ago the conditions still continued to a large degree, we find a political campaign to be attended with very different features. Partisan discussion, especially in presidential elections, often became virulent, and passionate invective was as frequent as calm discussion. There was less discrimination between local and national politics, and the candidate for local office had to bear all the denunciation that was heaped upon his party in general. Processions, bonfires, crowded meetings rapt to enthusiasm by fiery oratory, tense excitement for several weeks before election, characterized a campaign of that period and made it one of the most notable features of American life.

The newspaper and the quicker diffusion of knowledge have undoubtedly had most to do with changing politics from an absorbing excitemeait to a quietness that often seems apath\'. The newspaper reporter with his "interviews" and summaries of speeches, and the editor with his printed logic, reached more people and reached them more convincingly than the campaign orator, so that now the average citizen sits at home and quietly forms his opinions with the aid of newspapers. As a result flamboyant cam-

The conspicuous fact and one that is famihar to the residents of the coiintv is that Alleg;an county has been, with a brief exception, safely Whig and RepubHcan for nearly seventy years. It is somewhat surprising that all the votes of the county were given to tlie Democratic candidate, Van Biiren, in 1836, and none to Harrison, the Whig, But in the "log cabin and hard cider campaign" of 1840 the same candidate obtained a majority of eighty ont of less than five hundred votes. In 1848 Taylor, the Whig, was a rather weak candidate throughout the county, while Cass, the Democrat, drew a large Michigan vote on account of his previous prominence in Michigan politics, and he obtained a small plurality in this county. At this election the Free Soilers show a surprising gain. In 1843 Birney, the first candidate for governor on anti-salvery principles, obtained only three votes in the county, whereas five years later one hundred and seventy-four votes were given to the movement. That the sentiment of the county at that time inclined rather to Democracy than the decadent Whig party or the radical Free Soilers is shown by the gubernatorial election of 1849, when F. J. Littlejohn, Whig and Free Soil candidate, polled one hundred and nine less votes in his own county than Barry, the Democratic nominee.

Democratic strength was dominant for several years. The county gave the Democratic nominee for governor a majority in 1851 and a small plurality to Franklin Pierce in the presidential election of 1852. though the combined votes of Whigs and Free Soilers in that year showed increase.

In 1854 the Republican party was organized at Jackson, "under the oaks," and before the name had been adopted by other states Michigan had entered the Republican fold by electing Bingham as governor. But in that year Allegan county continued 'to show its preference for the Democratic candidate, giving Barry a majority of thirl^-six in a total vote of one thousand four hundred. In 1856. however, in both national and state elections the county returned a majority of nearly five hundred for Republican nominees. During the next eight years the Republicans were safely in the lead, though the two parties were quite well balanced in the county. In 1866 Crapo for governor had a majority of more than a thousand over the Democratic opponent, and two years later the county gave General Grant a clear majority of more than one thousand two hundred. RepubHcan success was even more marked in 1872, when both presidential and gubernatorial candidates received two-thirds of the votes cast in the county.

In 1874 the division of votes was fairly equal, and in 1876 the Democrats doubled their vote over that of four years previous, though Republican majority was still over a thousand. In 1880 the Republicans again polled twice as many votes as the Democrats. The parties were more nearly matched during the eighties than at any time since. Though Michigan elected a fusion Democrat for governor in 1882 and a Democrat in 1890, and lacked only a few thousand of giving Cleveland a plurality in 1884, Allegan county continued safe in Republican ranks, though by reduced Republican majorities, as will be seen by reference to the above tables. During the last three presidential elections the Republican vote has remained nearly stationary, while the Democratic vote decreased from three thousand nine hundred and thirty-seven given Bryan in 1896 to one thousand five hundred and seventy-six for Parker in 1904.

The rise of the minor parties in the county is also illustrated in the above tables. The Greenback idea remained an issue for three presidential elections - 1876, 1880 and 1884 - the votes in the county for these respective years being: 274, 1,209, 7^0- The Prohibition party has exhibited a similar rise and decline. In 1880 only four votes were cast under this heading. In 1884 this had increased to 1,004 ^oi" the candidate for governor. Since then there has been a steadj' falling off, the vote being (for President) 721 in 1888, 544 in 1892 and 93 in 1896.

Other deductions than political ones might be drawa from the figures given. The gubernatorial vote by townships in 1839 illustrates quite well the division of population at the time. Also, there are some surprising increases in number of votes between successive elections, which cannot be explained altogether by interest in the campaign, but rather by large additions to the population nii account of immigration and settlement during the period.