NIXON AND McCarthy DO WELL IN PRIMARY

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31628, 14 March 1968, Page 13

NIXON AND McCarthy DO WELL IN PRIMARY

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

CONCORD (New Hampshire), March 13.

Senator Eugene McCarthy (Democrat, Minnesota) was the hero for the Vietnam peace movement today after leading a big voter protest against President Johnson.

The 51 - year - old Senator, a littleknown former sociology professor, defying the Democratic Party Establishment, won an impressive share of the vote in the New Hampshire primary election yesterday even though he was defeated by the President. Mr Johnson, according to all political analyses, had more than one reason to worry about the results. His opponent’s good showing weakened his control over a Democratic Party already torn by dissent over Vietnam war policies and his personal popularity. Senator McCarthy’s campaign headquarters said early this morning that their candidate’s share of the vote on the Democratic ballot was about 39 per cent compared with about 53 per cent for President Johnson.

They also reported that Senator McCarthy had won many write-in votes on the Republican ballot. The President also was

faced by Mr Richard Nixon’s dazzling victory on the Republican ballot in the primary.

Mr Nixon easily crushed a bid by supporters of Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York, his undeclared rival for

the Republican Presidential nomination. The extent of Mr Nixon’s triumph, if followed by others in State primaries in the spring, meant that the Republicans would not be divided in the Presidential elections next November, as they were when President Johnson won a landslide victory against the then Senator Barry Goldwater in 1964.

Republican unity, coupled with an apparent growing revolt in Democratic Party ranks spelled trouble for the President’s expected bid for re-election in November, observers said.

Republican headquarters said Mr Nixon had won about 80 per cent, with only nine per cent written in for Mr Rockefeller. The remaining votes on both ballots—on which the names of President Johnson and Governor Rockefeller did not appear—were shared by minor candidates.

The question asked today in the wake of Senator McCarthy’s psychological win was whether the President

would feel compelled to moderate his present policies in Vietnam where his critics believe he is escalating the war and seeking military victoryover the Communists.

Senator McCarthy vowed to carry his fight into next month’s Wisconsin primary election.