The Political Deadlock at Olympia
Legislative gridlock over the re-election of U.S. Senator John B. Allen reveals deep factional divides and personal vendettas in Washington state politics.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
When the twenty-fifth ballot was taken by the legislature at Olympia, Representative Shadie of Pierce county, in obedience to pressure from his factional constituents, returned to his original allegiance to Turner. There were no other changes, and Senator Allen, after twenty-six ballots, has 51 votes—within six of an election. The great majority of Republicans in the state desire the re-election of Senator Allen; there are no charges of non-performance of public duty against him. His election is opposed by a sullen, obstructive, and sectional Republican minority who are only seeking to take Senator Allen's scalp to slake their revenge in his political blood. The friends of Senator Allen are ready for this test of political endurance; they can stay as long with Allen and public right as the opposition can with Turner and his rule-or-ruin tactics of obstruction.
“The opposition are only seeking to take Senator Allen's scalp to slake their revenge in his political blood.”
This 1893 gridlock mirrors the persistent, often bitter partisan stalemates that define modern legislative sessions in Washington. The rhetoric of 'rule-or-ruin' tactics and the struggle between party establishment figures and insurgent minorities remain a staple of state-level politics.
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