The Strange Lottery of Seattle’s 1889 Democratic Primary
While Republicans held conventional district conventions to nominate candidates for the constitutional convention, Seattle’s Democrats opted for the 'novel' method of picking delegates by lottery.
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.
It remained for the Democrats of Seattle to choose delegates to a convention by lot. This method has, at least, the merit of novelty. Now let the delegates thus chosen carry the idea to its logical sequence by giving their nomination to the gentlemen who draw the longest straws.
“This method has, at least, the merit of novelty. Now let the delegates thus chosen carry the idea to its logical sequence by giving their nomination to the gentlemen who draw the longest straws.”
In 1889, as Washington prepared to draft its state constitution, the political machinery of the territory was in high gear. The mockery leveled at the Democrats' 'lottery' method highlights the fierce, exclusionary nature of Gilded Age party politics, contrasting sharply with modern calls for sortition and citizens' assemblies to break the grip of special interests on government.
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