EUGENE DEBS
The 1920 presidential election had a weird format, especially since one candidate was running from the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary. Eugene Debs wanted to run on the Socialist Party ticket, even if two years earlier he had been found guilty on charges of sedition and ultimately sentenced to three 10-year sentences.
Moreover, it wasn’t even the first time he’d been in prison; many years before, he had served some time for striking against the Pullman Palace Car Company. However, his later actions were seen as more dangerous.
Debs strongly opposed World War I, and that’s why, in the summer of 1918, he gave a speech at an anti-war rally in Ohio. His message included the fact that the working class never had anything to say about declaring war or making peace.
As elections were getting closer, it was rather obvious that Debs wasn’t alone in his thoughts, as he ended up getting 913,693 votes. However, he didn’t get any electoral votes.
One Response
You forgot John Rowland, Governor of CT