Stevenson May Now Get Nomination

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27989, 8 June 1956, Page 11

Stevenson May Now Get Nomination

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) (Rec. 9.30 p.m.) SAN FRANCISCO, June 6. Supporters of Mr Adlai Stevenson today hailed his nearly two-to-one primary election victory in California over Senator Estes Kefauver as virtually assuring him of the Democratic Party’s Presidential nomination. But there were some Democrats who still believed the tight would go into the Democratic nominating convention in August “wide open.”

Mr Stevenson said he now considered Mr Averell Harriman, the multi-millionaire Governor of New York, as his closest rival.

Mr Harriman, avoiding personalities, interpreted the California result as meaning "a Democratic victory in November” over the Republican candidate, President Eisenhower.

By winning California, Mr Stevenson picked up 68 more delegate votes at the Democratic convention, increasing his total to 264 delegates pledged and favoured to him, according to an American Associated Press estimate. Senator Kefauver had 166, and other candidates —mostly states’ “favourite sons”—had 366. To win the nomination, a candidate must secure at least 686 J votes at the convention.

Mr Stevenson avoided predicting the outcome of the nominating convention in advance.

“It is a long time until August,” he said. He did not have enough delegates automatically to assure his nomination.

Latest results from California gave Mr Stevenson 749,451 primary votes to Senator Kefauver’s 407,512.

President Eisenhower, unopposed on the Republican Primary ballot, had 737,163. That return was from 16,350 precincts. The Democratic result was from a greater number. 18.254. Mrs Jacqjjeline Cochrane Odium, the famous aviatrix, won the Republican Party nomination for one of California’s 30 seats in the House of Representatives in yesterday’s voting.