Sparked by a comment on the Top Five board, I have decided to embark upon another TL for your enjoyment. As you can tell by the title, this will be about the alternate life of one of America's classic characters. Enjoy!
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HEARST VICTORIOUS! DEFEATS MCLELLAN BY NARROW MARGIN
"My friends, with this great victory the City of New York takes one giant step in the right direction. For too long has this city been ruled by the power hungry men of Tammany! For too long has business and politics worked side by side to rule over the people! For too long have the educated and elite turned a blind-eye to the rampant corruption in City Hall! No more! As Mayor I promise you that Tammany Hall will no longer use the first, the coin, or the job to stay in power. From now on it will be honest and good men who will govern this city. It is that much I promise."
Congressman and media mogul William Randolph Hearst was a victorious man. He had successfully defeated Mayor George McClellan Jr. in his quest for reelection. Not only that, but he had bested the power of Tammany Hall, one of his many enemies. All of Hearst’s life had been built up to this point. It had been just twenty years since he took over his first newspaper, and now he was the Mayor of the greatest city in the world! Things had not come easy to him, and he had been successful in large part due to an intense work ethic and a drive to never give up or surrender. That had been the case in the mayoral election as well.
Denied the Democratic Party’s nomination, Hearst formed the Municipal Ownership League. The League’s platform called for the municipal ownership of public utilities, and despite staunch opposition from both major parties and the Socialists was able to form a coalition of progressive reformers and the working class. Hearst had been reluctant to run at first, fearing that it would hurt his chances at becoming President. But after no other big name candidate stepped forward, Hearst accepted the challenge. The race was hard fought and brutal. In the end the results reflected this, as Hearst was victorious with just 37.56% of the popular vote, compared to McClellan’s 37.34%. This amounted to just about four thousand votes. There were charges of voter fraud on both sides, and the election was plagued with dirty tricks and smear tactics. But nonetheless, the results were verified and Hearst was victorious. He was the Mayor of New York City, and his enemies would just have to deal with it.
