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84 stories matching democraci
- The Struggle for a Fair Count
A biting 1892 editorial captures the intense partisan fury over gerrymandering and the systematic suppression of voters, drawing parallels between the American South and New York’s political machines.
- A Bluff Democrat Tells the State Committee to Hold Its Convention in Hell
Samuel Bass, a Whatcom Democrat, answers a request for advice with a scalding letter about party hacks, shyster judges and tin-horn gamblers.
- The Single-Tax Candidate Takes the Stage
J. Ercanbrack Jones details his vision for municipal reform, advocating for the taxation of land values over labor and improvements in his bid for Seattle mayor.
- Seattle Lost the Ship Canal Fight in One Olympia Night
The 1892 Democratic state convention rejected the Lake Washington ship canal, humiliated King County's delegates and nominated Henry J. Snively for governor — setting off a political feud over Seattle's waterfront future.
- Whatcom's Democrats Eat Their Own: 'Thieves, Fakirs and Impostors'
A county Democratic club meets to denounce its own officeholders — accusing a candidate of selling his nomination to the highest bidder and the party machine of swapping votes for cash — until a motion to adjourn ends the night in pandemonium.
- The Populist Editor Who Saw Anarchy and Came Home to the Democrats
After a political murder and a season of lawlessness, F. F. Lischke renames his Sprague paper and renounces the People’s Party.
- The Delegate the Party Refused to Seat
When King County Democrats elected a Black delegate to their state convention, Southern-leaning party members staged a revolt to avoid sitting with him.
- The People vs. The Senators: Washington’s Bold Demand for Direct Democracy
In a rare moment of unity, the state legislature sends a powerful message to Congress: stop letting politicians pick your senators. It’s time for the people to vote.
- The Democracy of Seattle Lights Up Pioneer Place
Torches, bonfires, and fiery rhetoric define a raucous political rally for Grover Cleveland.
- Seattle Democrats Bolt Their Own Party Over the Lake Washington Canal
Furious that the state convention caved to Pierce County and denounced the Lake Washington canal, King County Democrats vow to vote the Republican ticket — and to knife their own party from top to bottom.
- The Newspaper War of Port Townsend
When a local political faction decided they needed a newspaper organ, the resulting publication became a scandal-mongering scandal itself.
- A Hostile Arrival at the Land Office
Local Democrats express outrage as a new federal land office register assumes power, fearing his appointment signals a partisan strike against the city.
- Tacoma’s Democrats Wake Up to a Republican City
A bitter municipal election leaves Tacoma’s O’Brien Democrats stunned, as Republicans take the mayor’s office and most of the council.
- The Political Plumes of Washington Territory
A partisan battle over which political party actually deserves credit for the birth of Washington State.
- The $500 Vote: How a Spokane Judge’s Bribery Plot Exposed Seattle’s Political Rot
In the winter of 1903, Washington’s legislature was paralyzed by a scandal involving bribed senators and a desperate governor. When Representative Metcalfe revealed he was paid to vote for Judge Calkins, the resulting investigation tore through Olympia’s elite, revealing a web of corruption that threatened to define the state’s young democracy.
- The Party Says Not Guilty—and Cheers the Man It Removed
Seattle Democrats put their scandal-scarred administration on trial at Haake's Hall, buried a First Ward delegate fight, and sent David E. Durie into the mayor's race while J.M. Wolfe got the ovation.
- A Chinese Student's 1929 Speech Named the Racism Washington Tried to Forget
At the University of Washington's Cosmopolitan Club, Wesley Kai Hwa Kwang catalogued a century of anti-Chinese violence — including the 1885 killings in Squak Valley and the burning of Tacoma's Chinatown — and asked a white audience to account for it.
- The Political Rings of Olympia
An editorial from 1872 exposes a 'carpet-bagger' political machine using public funds to bankroll a partisan newspaper and manipulate Territorial elections.
- The Politics of Poverty: Seattle’s 1878 Voter Suppression Fight
A century and a half ago, local officials tried to implement a 'poll tax' to restrict voting rights, sparking a fierce debate over whether a citizen’s right to participate in democracy could be tied to their financial status.
- The Great Land Grab: 1886 Democracy vs. The Northern Pacific
At the 1886 Democratic Territorial Convention in Tacoma, delegates launched a blistering critique against the Northern Pacific Railroad for failing its promises and seizing public lands meant for settlers.
- The Martial Law Debate that Rocked the Territory
When the Democratic Party of Washington Territory tried to denounce Governor Squire for imposing martial law, they ended up in an awkward tangle of political hypocrisy.
- The Mayor’s Labor Pact: How Organized Labor Bought Spokane’s City Hall
Mayor Byrne opens up about the 'organized labor' machine that secured his election and warns of a looming anti-Republican coalition in Washington State.
- The Senate Chamber Shatters: A Riot of Words and Glass in Washington Territory
As Senators Ingalls and Voorhees traded insults that turned personal, a crowd of thousands pressed against the doors until the glass gave way, turning a legislative debate into a spectacle of democracy's raw edge.
- The Torchlight Parade for 'Prosperity'
Thousands of Seattle residents packed the streets and an armory in 1889 to cheer Republican candidates, a political display that felt more like a frantic race for jobs and survival.
- The Night Seattle Painted the Town Red
After a landslide victory in the 1892 city elections, thousands of jubilant supporters flooded Pioneer Place to celebrate the end of a 'brazen, triple-plated' political ring.
Also about this, in other words
- The Fight for Direct Democracy
Labor journals lobby for the Initiative and Referendum to bypass legislative corruption and ensure the people have the final say on state law.
- The Seven Wise Men and the Municipal League
Local politics are in flux as the city's power brokers and the Democratic party vie for control ahead of the municipal elections.
- The Unladylike Ballot
When women marched to the polls in Pasco, it sparked a local scandal that challenged traditional notions of 'respectability' and gender roles.