The Senatorial Deadlock in Olympia
Partisan maneuvering and 'dark horse' schemes stall the election of Senator John B. Allen.
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.
The old dodge in the senatorial contests, adopted by the enemies of Senator Allen, of attempting by deception and flattery or offers of support to bring additional candidates into the contest, is not proving as successful as was hoped by the little band of conspirators now engaged in an attempt to defeat an election of a senator at this session. They are almost at their wits' end in their efforts to induce members who have been supporting Allen to change their votes to some special friend. Some of the new men proposed have been willing to enter, but the failure of the scheme is due to the fact that none of the Allen members can be won away from the regular Republican nominee. Tremendous pressure has been brought to bear in some instances, but the members subjected to it have not yielded. It was planned to spring two or three new aspirants tomorrow, but the present indications are that the purpose will be abandoned for the reason that it has been found impossible to secure in any of the cases the local support wanted.
“They are almost at their wits' end in their efforts to induce members who have been supporting Allen to change their votes to some special friend.”
Political infighting and the use of 'dark horse' candidates to stall legislative processes remain a hallmark of legislative sessions today. The 1891 struggle highlights the intense local control and personal lobbying that characterized early Washington state politics, echoing current anxieties about partisan deadlock.
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