Out of the Shadow

[Cold War Liberal]

Glad to see so much progress! One thing though, isn’t 1990 only 17 years (not more than a quarter century) from 1973?

Oops basic arithmetic isn't my forte. I'll change it to 2000

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Amazing!

[Cold War Liberal]

January 8, 1974

EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT RATIFIED

   This afternoon, North Carolina Governor Skipper Bowles and millions of American feminists celebrated as his state became the 38th to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. There was initially opposition from conservatives in the state legislature, but since the 1970 midterms brought a number of ERA supporters into both chambers, and after Bowles won the 1972 gubernatorial election, the chances of North Carolina ratifying the Amendment increased. Governor Bowles pushed hard for the Amendment, and now his work has paid off: thanks to this ratification, the ERA will now just be known as the 27th Amendment to the United States Constitution.

   Famed ACLU attorney Ruth Bader Ginsburg made a statement congratulating Governor Bowles and the North Carolina state legislatures, while President Goldwater and his outspoken former Attorney General Phyllis Schlafly both condemned the Amendment’s ratification as “a legislative overreach that is sadly now enshrined in our Constitution” and “a dark day for women,” respectively.

   The Amendment, which guarantees equal treatment regardless of sex, goes into effect two years from today.

Green = ratified, blue = passed in one chamber, red = voted down

January 30, 1974

President Hubert Humphrey delivers the 1974 State of the Union address to Congress. Humphrey calls for a comprehensive overhaul of the public education system. Humphrey’s plan, which is basically a revamped version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that failed in 1965, is the farthest reaching education legislation ever proposed. Millions of dollars in federal money would be put into primary and secondary education. New instructional material would be commissioned, new educational standards would be implemented, and school libraries would get much more funding. Teachers’ pay would also be increased, and new grants to low-income prospective college students would be created.

Desegregation and improved race relations are the next issues to be brought up. Humphrey calls for “total equality among the races, not only under the law but in practice.” The President congratulated Congress for its passing of laws outlawing housing discrimination and protecting black people’s right to the vote, but said they still had work to do. More stringent employment discrimination laws, more efforts to end de facto school segregation, and fostering better employment prospects in urban areas were the three points Humphrey hit upon the hardest.

Continuing the jobs theme, Humphrey also announces that he intends to push for a federal jobs program for veterans of the war in Vietnam, in order to keep recently returned veterans off the streets. “There is nothing more honorable than fighting for your country,” declares the President, “and it is only right that the government repay the favor by providing for those who answered the call of duty.”

Humphrey’s second State of the Union speech is well received. Senator Bob Dole (R-KS) gives the Republican response, mostly railing against the call by Humphrey to attempt to use the government to change societal attitudes regarding race; referencing George Orwell’s 1984, Dole states that “short of creating a thought police to stamp out ‘crimethink,’ that goal [of eliminating racism], while noble, is not possible solely through government intervention.” Senator Dole, who is up for reelection in 1974, is regarded as a potential Presidential candidate for 1976 and a rising star of the party.

February 7, 1974

Mel Brooks’ controversial Western satire Blazing Saddles, starring Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor, premiers. Its vulgarity raises eyebrows, but its critique of racism both in 1874 and 1974 earn it critical praise and cult classic status for decades.

February 10, 1974

President Humphrey meets with Senators Ted Kennedy (D-MA), Charles Percy (R-IL), Katherine Peden (D-KY), Jacob Javits (R-NY), and Mike Mansfield (D-MT), along with a number of congresspeople from both parties, to discuss the American Education Act of 1974, the landmark education bill which is making its way through committee. The bill would secure funding for public schooling from kindergarten through high school for schools across the country, in addition to funding school libraries; creating grants for poor students, including those in college; increasing school teachers’ pay; and expanding the National School Lunch Program. Humphrey states that he would “love” the AEA to be put on his desk before the midterms. Speaker Carl Albert (D-OK-3) and Senate Majority Leader Mansfield assure the President that they would have a bill out of committee by the end of the month, and that they hope to have it passed by the midterms as well.

February 28, 1974

Harold Wilson’s Labour party keeps their majority in the British parliament, with their coalition holding a razor thin majority of 322 seats, four more than the 318 needed for a majority. Harold Wilson, who has been the British Prime Minister since 1964, will likely remain as leader for the foreseeable future.

March 6, 1974

The American Education Act is successfully voted out of the House Committee on Education and Labor, a few days behind the informal goal set by Speaker Albert a month prior.

March 15, 1974

A severely depressed man by the name of Samuel Byck assassinates renowned composer Leonard Bernstein outside Lincoln Center with a stolen .22 caliber revolver. Byck reportedly yells “die, queer” as he shoots, referencing rumors the composer is gay. U.S. Secret Service had previously been tipped off about Byck, as he previously made threats against Presidents Goldwater and Humphrey, virologist Jonas Salk, and Senator Abraham Ribicoff (D-CT); however, they failed to see him as a serious threat. Bernstein takes a bullet to the chest and two to the head, killing him nearly instantly. President Humphrey’s office releases a statement “mourn[ing] the loss of one of the nation’s great artistic talents.”

March 22, 1974

After some debate, education reform passes the House of Representatives with 245 votes in its favor. The Senate begins its debate on the AEA.

April 1, 1974

NBC’s Barbara Walters does a live interview with the late Leonard Bernstein’s widow, Felicia Montealegre. After discussing her anti-Vietnam activism, Montealegre states that “sometimes [Leonard] would be homosexual,” which sparks controversy among the general public. Montealegre states that she loved and supported her late husband in everything he did, even though, in her opinion, “when he was holding back the homosexual part, he did some of his best work.” She also expresses support for the gay rights movement, a fringe position at the time. The nascent movement, which started gaining national attention in 1969 after the riots at the Stonewall Inn in New York City, quickly adopts Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre as icons within their subculture. Meanwhile, Governor Kennedy passes stronger gun control in the state of New York, and pushes for the national government to take action as well.

April 15, 1974

After three weeks of debate, the American Education Act passes the Senate with 62 votes. The sweeping education reform bill is opposed by all conservatives in both parties, most moderate Republicans, and a few moderate Democrats; however, the Democratic majority is big enough that the nay votes of conservative Democrats such as Herman Talmadge (D-GA) and James Eastland (D-MS) are cancelled out by the affirmative votes of a few moderate Republicans, such as Jacob Javits (R-NY) and Charles Percy (R-IL).

President Humphrey signs the bill into law later that evening.

April 18, 1974

Conservative icon William F. Buckley announces that he will run as a Conservative party candidate for US Senate against Senator Javits and the Democratic nominee, likely to be Rep. Shirley Chisholm, in New York. Buckley states that Javits’ vote for the education reform bill is what spurred him to make the announcement, but also calls Javits “generally out of touch” with the state of New York. With Republicans divided between Javits and Buckley, the Democrats should be in a good position to pick up this seat if their candidate is strong enough. Congresswoman Chisholm has been making noise about running, though she has not officially announced her campaign. The only other major Democrat looking at running is Lt. Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr., who has also not announced his intentions for 1974. Governor Robert F. Kennedy is expected to run for another term, and seeing as his latest approval rating sits at 64%, he is likely to win reelection.

May 5, 1974

François Mitterrand and Valéry Giscard d'Estaing win the first round of the French Presidential election, with 44% and 32% of the vote, respectively. The second round will be held on May 19th.

May 16, 1974
Hubert

President Humphrey about to get bad news, May 16, 1974

Hubert had enjoyed the first year and a half of his presidency, and with his high approval ratings, it appeared he could look forward to another six and a half. Still, he felt a pang of worry as he responded to his personal physician’s summons by walking down to his office himself.

General Tkach, the Physician to the President, had conducted a routine yearly physical on President Humphrey a week before. The urgency conveyed in the summons was not comforting to Hubert, who at that moment arrived in Tkach’s office. “You wanted to see me?” he asked. “Yes, Mr. President. We just got some tests back from the lab, and we think we found something…” the General trailed off.

“What kind of something?”

Tkach hesitated. “Bladder cancer, sir.”

Hubert was silent for a while. He didn’t feel sick. Finally, he feebly asked “are you sure?”

“Well, we’ll need to run a few more tests, but the signs don’t look encouraging, sir. If we’ve caught it early enough there may be some treatment options available, but if it’s been hiding for a while then treatment might be a hindrance to your office. Once we do a few more tests - x-rays, MRIs, stuff like that - you’ll have more information, and then you can make political decisions from there.”

Hubert knew it was early in the diagnosis - hell, he might not even have cancer - but those political decisions immediately started weighing on him. Should he run for reelection in 1976? Should he resign if treating cancer meant neglecting his responsibilities? Should he even seek treatment; was the lack of alertness that’d bring be a national security risk? And then there were the other, personal questions: when would he tell his family? When would he tell the rest of America? If he was only given a few more years to live, where did he want to go to die? What did he want to do before then? These thoughts swirled in his head as he left the physician’s office and returned to the Oval.

May 18, 1974

India tests “Smiling Buddha,” the nation’s first successful nuclear bomb. The government calls it “peaceful” but Pakistan and China do not take it that way. Pakistan further accelerates their nuclear program in response.

May 19, 1974

François Mitterrand wins the second round of the French Presidential election with 50.2% of the vote to Valéry Giscard d'Estaing’s 49.8%. This is the closest French Presidential election in history at the time.

May 24, 1974

Former Vice President Morris Udall (serving under President Kennedy from 1965-1969) announces a run for the Arizona Senate seat currently held by Sen. Paul Fannin (R).

June 1, 1974

After narrowly losing the Democratic Senate primary, Governor Ivan Allen Jr. of Georgia announces a run for Georgia’s Senate election as a “New South Democrat,” a more progressive alternative to the more conservative Democratic alternative, Sen. Herman Talmadge. Allen and Talmadge will go against the Republican nominee, likely Macon Mayor Ronnie Thompson. In the event that none of the candidates in the general election receives 50% + 1 of the votes, there will be a runoff held at a later date between the top two vote getters. Governor Allen is popular, but taking out an entrenched incumbent like Senator Talmadge will be an uphill battle.

June 4, 1974

California Secretary of State Jerry Brown wins the Democratic nomination for US Senate to run against incumbent Republican Senator Charleton Heston.

June 20, 1974

Secretary Brezhnev and President Humphrey meet again for another round of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks.

July 1, 1974
Gallup Poll
Do you approve of the job President Humphrey is doing as President?
Yes: 60%
No: 35%
No opinion: 3%
Not sure: 2%
Didn't answer: 0%

If the 1974 midterms were held today, who would you vote for?
Democrats: 45%
Republicans: 45%
Others: 1%
Not sure: 8%
Didn't answer: 1%

July 2, 1974

Chinese and Soviet troops continue their standoff at the Sino-Soviet border. Secretary Brezhnev schedules a meeting with Chairwoman Jiang of the People’s Republic of China for August 1 to discuss ways to de-escalate tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations. Meanwhile, Chinese, Indian, and Pakistani troop presence in the disputed Kashmir region has increased dramatically. India and Pakistan have both fast-tracked their nuclear programs as well, to be able to compete with China if need be. These developments worry many in the West, and many hope that the next month’s meeting between Brezhnev and Jiang reduces tensions.

July 16, 1974

President Goldwater’s former Army Chief of Staff and Vietnam War strategic architect, General William Westmoreland, narrowly beats State Sen. James Edwards for the Republican nomination for Governor of South Carolina. The GOP hopes Westmoreland can become the first Republican Governor of South Carolina since Reconstruction.

President Goldwater helped General Westmoreland win the nomination, appearing with “Westy,” as he is nicknamed, at multiple campaign rallies across the state. Those close to the ostensibly disgraced former President say Goldwater is testing the waters for a wider campaign across the South ahead of this year’s midterms. Goldwater is still reasonably popular, if still controversial, in the South, and has been drumming up support for conservative Republicans in the region, such as Georgia Senate candidate Ronnie Thompson.

July 21, 1974
BREZHNEV DEAD
Soviet Leader Has Heart Attack at 67



Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev
December 19, 1906 - July 21, 1974

The world is shocked this morning as the latest news blasts out of Moscow: Leonid Brezhnev, the leader of the Soviet Union since Nikita Khrushchev's 1964 ouster, has had a fatal heart attack. A central figure in world politics for over a decade, Brezhnev brought relative political stability to the USSR and made strides towards a more peaceful relationship with the other side of the Cold War, led by the United States. Rumors have recently begun circulating that Brezhnev’s health was in decline, and this morning they seem to have been proven correct.

As the Soviet Union mourns, political jockeying to succeed Brezhnev has already begun. Two major candidates have instantly been considered the most likely next Soviet leader: Second Secretary Mikhail Suslov, and Fyodor Kulakov, a member of the Politburo that was reportedly in Brezhnev’s good graces.

The status of the scheduled meeting between the Soviet leader and Chairwoman Jiang of China is undetermined.

President Humphrey has offered his condolences to the people of the USSR for the loss of their leader.

July 22, 1974

Senator Wayne Morse (D-OR) dies at age 73. Sen. Morse was retiring this year; an election between Governor McCall and state Sen. Betty Roberts is scheduled for this November. The seat will be vacant until then.

July 27, 1974

After several days of debate, Fyodor Kulakov is chosen to be the next General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, making him the de facto Soviet leader. This is effective immediately. Mikhail Suslov, considered the other main candidate for the job, will remain Second Secretary. Kulakov’s first order of business is to resolve the Sino-Soviet border tensions, and as such communicates with Chairwoman Jiang regarding the meeting scheduled for August 1. Needing more than five days to get settled into his new government, Kulakov asks to postpone the meeting for two weeks; Jiang agrees and a the meeting is moved to August 15.

August 4, 1974

President Humphrey announces a federal jobs bill for Vietnam veterans will be introduced by Senator Walter Mondale (DFL-MN) in the coming days. Designed to provide veterans with income after many returned without much in the way of job opportunities, the program would allow physically healthy veterans to apply for temporary federal infrastructure jobs to help “build resumes while also building new roads and bridges,” Senator Mondale said at the President’s press conference in the Rose Garden.

August 15, 1974

Secretary Kulakov and Chairwoman Jiang meet in Sochi to discuss ways the two nations could end the recent series of border skirmishes and prevent war between the USSR and PRC. At the end of the meeting, the two world leaders hold a joint press conference wherein Kulakov describes Jiang as “sensible” while Jiang commends Kulakov’s “commitment to peace” and wishes him luck in his new job.

August 17, 1974

Chinese troops start to slowly move away from the Sino-Soviet border. Chinese troop presence in and near the disputed Kashmir territory is set to increase, heightening tensions between India, the PRC, and Pakistan.

August 30, 1974

US Secretary of Agriculture Cesar Chavez announces that some of the farm subsidies cancelled by the Goldwater Administration would be making a return; however, he states that the subsidies will be targeted at smaller farms owned by “average Americans, not corporations.” Goldwater’s Agriculture department under Secretaries Curtis and Butz pushed corporate farms as the future of agriculture, but Secretary Chavez, a former farmer himself, has taken a diametrically oppositional view of how the nation’s farms should operate.

[Cold War Liberal]

September 10, 1974
Kennedy, Chisholm Win Primaries

Is Congresswoman Chisholm about to become Senator Chisholm?

New York, NY - Governor Robert Kennedy was easily renominated for another term as New York’s chief executive tonight, as expected; he only faced token opposition. Lt. Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. did not run for renomination, deciding instead to run for Senate; former Small Business Administration chief Howard Samuels won nomination to that position. Lawyer Mario Cuomo won the party’s nomination for Attorney General.

The Senate primary was where the most attention was focused. Lt. Gov. Roosevelt faced off against Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm (NY-12) and former Labor Secretary Daniel Patrick Moynihan. Chisholm won 48% of the vote, Roosevelt won 40%, and Moynihan, having been a Democrat who served under President Goldwater, only received 12% of the vote. Chisholm will face off against Senator Jacob Javits (R) and conservative icon William F. Buckley (C) in the November 5 election.

September 24, 1974

President Humphrey and Secretary Kulakov meet for the first time in Vienna during one of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks. While progress on SALT has mostly been headed up by bureaucrats from both the US and USSR with occasional meetings between the two countries’ leaders, following the death of Leonid Brezhnev both Humphrey and Kulakov decided it would be best to meet in person.

September 30, 1974

Secretary Kulakov announces that, like the United States, the USSR would also attempt to reach Mars. The Soviet plan is to successfully send a lander within the next year, and, ambitiously, to send humans to Mars (on a one-way mission) by 1990, undercutting NASA’s goal by a decade.

October 5, 1974

Former President Barry Goldwater begins campaigning for congressional and gubernatorial candidates in select areas. Goldwater, who lost every state to President Humphrey in 1972, is still somewhat popular in the deep South, which is almost exclusively where he will campaign. Candidates Goldwater supports include South Carolina gubernatorial candidate William Westmoreland, Georgia Senate candidate Ronnie Thompson, and Arkansas Senate candidate Maurice Britt. Goldwater will also make appearances with William F. Buckley as he attempts to win a Senate seat in New York, and with Senator Paul Fannin in his attempt to retain his seat against former Vice President Udall in Goldwater’s home state of Arizona. Newt Gingrich (running for GA-06) and Ron Paul (running for TX-22) are two House candidates that Goldwater will campaign with as well.

While Goldwater’s approval rating is still around 30%, he is still widely liked inside the conservative faction of the GOP.

October 14, 1974

The first NASA Mars lander to be sent after President Humphrey restarted the space race, named Prometheus 23, lands successfully on the red planet.

November 4, 1974
Gallup Poll
Do you approve of the job President Humphrey is doing as President?
Yes: 58%
No: 37%
No opinion: 4%
Not sure: 1%
Didn't answer: 0%

If the 1974 midterms were held today, who would you vote for?
Republicans: 48%
Democrats: 47%
Others: 1%
Not sure: 4%
Didn't answer: 0%

[Cold War Liberal]

The 1974 update was so big I had to split it into two parts. Next comes Election Night 1974, which will be presented like I've done Presidential elections in the past.

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Very good stuff! Is Jiang Qing the leader of China???

[Cold War Liberal]

Very good stuff! Is Jiang Qing the leader of China???

Yes, Mao was assassinated in 1972 and Jiang took his place. She may or may not be acting rather aggressive on the world stage to preempt accusations of weakness due to her being a woman.

[President Goldwater's] concern [regarding the Vietnam War] rose due to an event that occured in China: Mao Zedong was assassinated on October 2, and his death was blamed on Lin Biao, who fled to the Soviet Union. Mao’s wife, Jiang Qing, took the reigns of power from her husband, and began to run the government of the PRC with the other members of the “Gang of Four.” Goldwater was wary of Jiang, and while he didn’t want to pull out of Vietnam, he didn’t want to send in more troops either and run the risk of a negative Chinese reaction. Jiang was an unknown factor, unpredictable; Goldwater wasn’t going to take any chances.

[KaiserDave]

Hubert must live!

[America Needs R'hllor]

This is looking like an awesome update, I'll make a comment before continuing to read it: Sad about Bernstein. But with liberalism on the rise and with his death emboldening the LGB (hopefully, soon to be LGBT) movement, I hope that it can rise and get stronger before it did in our time. I'm espcially looking forward to see what you have planned for one Harvey Milk

Edit: Love this! Humphrey is doing really well, hope the space exploration can continue to be expanded. I also hope that his cancer was discovered early enough to treat it without impending him as President, but if not, I'm sure Scoop can do fine. Also, torn between Chisholm and Javits- would be really happy with any of them.

[UWS]

Interesting update

[Mr. Smith]

...Quite the development.

[Cold War Liberal]

November 5, 1974
6:00 PM

“Good evening, I’m Walter Cronkite and this is CBS coverage of election night 1974. Polls for these midterm elections have just closed in the states of Indiana and Kentucky. Senator Ruckelshaus is locked in a close battle with Governor Birch Bayh; Indiana is too close to call. In Kentucky, Senator Katherine Peden has a lead over Congressman Gene Snyder of about four points, but this race too is too early to call. Let’s take a look at the maps…”

Senate

Democrats: 52 ( 16)
Republicans: 14 ( 17)
Vacant: 1 (formerly D)

“...so as you can see, we can already project that the Democratic party will hold the US Senate. Even if the GOP sweeps every state, they would only have 48 seats - three short of a majority. This year’s Senate map is rather unfavorable to the GOP; they may even lose a seat or two after the night is done. It is far too early to tell…”

7:00 PM

“...welcome back to election night 1974. Polls have just closed in Virginia, Vermont, South Carolina, Georgia, and most of Florida. In Vermont, incumbent Republican Senator George Aiken is retiring, and the race is a close one between former Rep. Richard Mallary and the man who beat him in an upset last election: Rep. Bernard Sanders. Once a somewhat radical activist - even describing himself as a “democratic socialist” at one point - Congressman Sanders has moderated his views to an extent in his campaign against Mallary, though he is still firmly progressive. The two men are virtually tied in the polls at the moment, even as we can call the governor’s election in that state for Thomas Salmon, the incumbent.

“In South Carolina, incumbent Senator Marshall Parker has beaten back a challenge from outgoing Rep. Thomas Gettys, winning a convincing margin. The governor’s race between Gen. William Westmoreland and Rep. William Dorn is too close to call at this hour, but Westmoreland leads. In Georgia, George Busbee has easily won the Governor’s mansion, while Sen. Herman Talmadge, Governor Ivan Allen, Jr., and Macon mayor Ronnie Thompson are in a three-way dead heat in the Senate race, which will likely go to a runoff. In Florida, both Governor Askew and Senator Collins have won comfortable reelections…”

7:30 PM

“...this is CBS News’ coverage of the 1974 midterms. Polls have now closed in Ohio, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Senator John Ashbrook is facing off against former state senator Howard Metzenbaum in Ohio, which is too early to call. Governor Gilligan and former Governor Rhodes’s race is too early to call as well.

“CBS can project, however, that former Governor Terry Sanford has won the Senate seat of Sam Ervin, who is retiring, in North Carolina. Additionally, Katherine Peden has won reelection in Kentucky. She will be a two term Senator at least.”

Senate

Democrats: 55 ( 13)
Republicans: 15 ( 16)
Vacant: 1
Governors

Democrats: 18 ( 24)
Republicans: 0 ( 7)
Independents: 0 ( 1)

[America Needs R'hllor]

Can't wait for more!

[Cold War Liberal]

November 5, 1974
8:00 PM

“Welcome back to CBS News, this is Walter Cronkite with new returns from the 1974 midterms. A whole host of states closed their polls this hour, and a number of interesting results have come in. First, CBS News can project that the Democrats will maintain their control of the House of Representatives. By how much remains to be seen, but one thing is sure: there will be a Democratic trifecta of control until at least 1977.

“In Alabama, Senator Allen is effectively unopposed, and will win with over 95% of the vote. Bill Baxley will be the next Governor of the state.

“In Connecticut, Abraham Ribicoff has won reelection to the US Senate, while Governor Daddario will be governor for four more years.

“In Illinois, Senator Adlai Stevenson III will easily win reelection.

“In Kansas, the race between Senator Bob Dole and Congressman William Roy is too close to call, as is the governor’s race between Robert Bennett and Vern Miller.

“In Maine, George Mitchell has crushed James Erwin by almost 20 points.

“In Maryland, Senator Spiro Agnew has beaten Barbara Mikulski, while Governor Mathias has also won reelection.

“In Massachusetts, Michael Dukakis has won the governorship after John Volpe’s retirement. This is a pickup for the Democrats.

“In Michigan, Governor Sander Levin has won reelection.

“In Missouri, Senator Thomas Curtis has easily won reelection.

“In New Hampshire, the Senate race between Louis Wyman and John Durkin is too close to call, as is the governor’s race. Governor McLane, originally an independent, is running for reelection as a Democrat against Meldrim Thomson Jr.”

“Both races in Ohio are too close to call at the moment.

“In Oklahoma, Senator Harry Bellmon is facing a tough competitor in former Senator Fred Harris. The race is too early to call. David Boren, who successfully primaried Governor Hall, has won his first term as Governor convincingly.

“In Pennsylvania, Senator Richard Schweiker is ahead of Peter Flaherty by almost 5 points, but it is too soon to say who will win. Governor Shapp leads Andrew Lewis by a similar margin, but, like the Senate race, it is too early to call.

“Philip Noel overwhelmingly is reelected Governor of Rhode Island.

“Jacob Butcher will be reelected Governor of Tennessee.

“Barefoot Sanders will be reelected Governor of Texas.”

8:30 PM

“Polls have just closed in Arkansas, where Governor Britt is locked in a close race against Senator Fulbright, and where Dale Bumpers has finally managed to win the Governorship. The Democrats have picked up two governorships already tonight.

“We at CBS can project that Richard Schweiker will win reelection in Pennsylvania, while Governor Milton Shapp will govern Pennsylvania for four more years.

“In Indiana, William Ruckelshaus has narrowly won another Senate term. In a weak prospective field in 1976, Ruckelshaus and Schweiker stand out as moderates who could hypothetically reunite the divided Republican party and make a strong showing against President Humphrey, though it is too early to tell at this point.”

Senate

Democrats: 58 ( 10)
Republicans: 19 ( 12)
Vacant: 1

Governors

Democrats: 29 ( 13)
Republicans: 1 ( 6)
Independents: 0 ( 1)

[Cold War Liberal]

November 5, 1974
9:00 PM

“Good evening, welcome back to election night 1974 on CBS. A number of states have just closed their polls. Let’s run through them all:

“In Arizona, the election is too close to call between Senator Fannin and former Vice President Udall. Raul Hector Castro and Evan Mecham are locked in a close race for the governorship as well.

“In Colorado, unpopular Senator Peter Dominick was successfully primaried by businessman John McCandish King, who seems to have won an easy election. Lt. Gov. John Vanderhoof has beaten former Lt. Gov. Mark Anthony Hogan by several points.

“In Louisiana, Russell B. Long ran unopposed and has been elected by default.

“In Minnesota, Wendell Anderson has been reelected Governor in a landslide.

“J. James Exon has won reelection as Governor of Nebraska.

“New Mexico’s gubernatorial election is too close to call.

“In New York, Shirley Chisholm leads Senator Javits due to a significant amount of the vote - currently around 12% - being taken by Conservative candidate William F. Buckley. However, it is too early to call the race. Governor Robert Kennedy has won another term in office very easily.

“North Dakota’s Senate race is too early to call.

“South Dakota’s Senate race is too early to call. We can project Richard Kneip will be reelected Governor.

“In Wisconsin, Gaylord Nelson has won another term in the Senate while Patrick Lucey has been reelected Governor. With this call, Senate Democrats are ensured a filibuster-proof majority until at least 1977.

“Edgar Herschler has won the Wyoming Governorship, the third flip for Democrats tonight.

“We can also now make an interesting call: Gen. William Westmoreland will now be Governor William Westmoreland. Gov.-elect Westmoreland, whose campaign was supported by ostensibly disgraced former President Goldwater, will be the first Republican governor of South Carolina since Reconstruction. This is the first gubernatorial flip for Republicans tonight.

“Additionally, Senator John Ashbrook has been reelected in Ohio by a very narrow margin.”

10:00 PM

“...polls are now closed in all but 5 states, and a few calls can be made at this hour…

“In Idaho, Senator Evans will win a full term of his own. Not a single Senate seat has flipped to or from either party as of yet. Cecil Andrus has been reelected Governor.

“In Iowa, David Stanley has won another term, while Charles Grassley has flipped the Governor’s mansion to the Republicans.

“In Nevada, Lt. Gov. Harry Reid has won the Senate seat Alan Bible is retiring out of. Mike O’Callaghan has won reelection as Governor.

“We’re just getting word that Senator Bob Dole, another potential 1976 candidate, has secured himself another term in the Senate. The same cannot be said of Jacob Javits: Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm has been elected Senator from New York with 42% of the vote to Javits’ 37% and Buckley’s 19%. Chisholm is the first female African-American Senator-elect, and is the first Senate flip of the night.

“Governor Gilligan of Ohio has lost to former Governor Rhodes, we are being informed. Evan Mecham will apparently be the next Governor of Arizona. And Governor McLane will be reelected in New Hampshire as a Democrat.

“Oh, and one more call we can make at this time: Maurice Britt, outgoing Governor of Arkansas, will be the next Senator from that state, defeating the unpopular Senator J. William Fulbright, who narrowly survived a primary challenge from former Governor Orval Faubus. This is the first flip for the Republicans, negating the Democratic victory in New York.”

Senate

Democrats: 63 ( 5)
Republicans: 24 ( 7)
Vacant: 1

Governors

Democrats: 37 ( 5)
Republicans: 6 ( 1)
Independents: 0 ( 1)

[Cold War Liberal]

Also fun thing I thought of while doing some research and decided to add:

March 21, 1973

In San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, the Supreme Court rules that funding schools via property taxes is an unconstitutional violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment because it gives an unfair advantage to the wealthy. Justices Marshall, Clark, Brennan, White, and Goldberg were the majority, with Blackmun, Bork, Carswell, and Stewart dissenting.

Funding schools via property taxes is unconstitutional in this timeline, thanks to JFK convincing Earl Warren to retire early and LBJ not pushing Goldberg and Clark off the Court.

[ClassicGOPer]

Great TL, awesome!

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

Great TL, awesome!

[Cold War Liberal]

November 5, 1974
11:00 PM

“Welcome back to CBS coverage of the midterms. I’m Walter Cronkite, and polls just closed on the West Coast and in Hawaii. Senator Warren Magnuson of Washington has won reelection. In Oregon, Governor McCall and Justice Roberts are neck and neck in the Senate race, while Robert Straub has easily won the gubernatorial race - a flip for Democrats. In California, Senator Charleton Heston is slightly ahead of his challenger Jerry Brown, while Governor Unruh has won reelection handily. And in Hawaii, Daniel Inouye has won another term in an absolute landslide, while Governor Crossley trails George Ariyoshi but has not officially lost yet.

“In New Hampshire, Louis Wyman has beaten John Durkin by a little under a percentage point - 50.1% to 49.5% - to hold that Senate seat for Republicans. In neighboring Vermont, there is a similarly close race we can now call. 33 year old Congressman Bernard Sanders, who won in an absolutely shocking upset just two years ago, has narrowly defeated Richard Mallary - who held Sanders’ seat for ten months before losing to the insurgent activist - for Vermont’s Senate seat 48.2% to 47.6%. This is the second Democratic flip of the night, for a net change of one seat in Democrats’ favor.

“Interesting news out of Georgia: while it has been clear for a few hours now that a runoff was inevitable, it has been confirmed that the runoff will be between conservative firebrand Ronnie Thompson, the Republican, and Governor Ivan Allen Jr., the progressive Democrat. Conservative Democrat Herman Talmadge, the incumbent, is in third place. Thompson has 33.8%, Allen has 33.2%, and Talmadge has 32.3% with an estimated 99% of the vote counted.

“In North Dakota, Milton Young has narrowly won reelection by a little more than half a percentage point. And in a shocking turn of events, it looks like… it looks like George McGovern has seriously underperformed expectations in South Dakota tonight. We can call that Senate race for his challenger, Leo K. Thorsness; he has won by a quarter of a percentage point and will be the second GOP pickup in the Senate tonight. It looks as though Republicans are doing well in a region that was the nail in their electoral coffin two years ago: the Plains. Let’s look at the maps.”

Senate

Democrats: 66 ( 2)
Republicans: 27 ( 4)
Vacant: 1
Headed to runoff: 1

Governors

Democrats: 39 ( 3)
Republicans: 6 ( 1)
Independents: 0 ( 1)

[Cold War Liberal]

November 6, 1974
12:00 AM

“It is now a new day, and some of the races for the midterms have not been resolved, though polls are only still open in Alaska. We do have some calls, however.

“In Kansas, Robert Bennett, the Republican, will defeat Vern Miller, the Democrat, and flip the governorship to the GOP.

“In Oklahoma, Sen. Harry Bellmon will very narrowly defeat former Sen. Fred Harris, keeping this seat in GOP hands.

“In New Mexico, where Democratic Governor King is term-limited, Republican State Sen. Joe Skeen has defeated fellow State Sen. Jerry Apodaca and will be the next Governor of New Mexico, another flip for the GOP.

“In Utah, Jake Garn, the Republican, is the new Senator-elect.

“The Hawaii governor’s race and Arizona, Oregon, and California Senate races are all still too close to call at this hour.”

1:00 AM

“Polls have finally closed in Alaska, where Democrat Mike Gravel has won another term. We can also project that Jay Hammond has narrowly beaten Governor Egan, flipping another governorship to the Republicans.

“In Hawaii, we can project that George Ariyoshi has flipped the governorship to the Democrats by beating Governor Crossley. This was the last Governor’s race which remained uncalled.

“In the Senate, we can project that Governor McCall has beaten Justice Roberts in the Oregon Senate race, filling the seat Wayne Morse (D) held until his death earlier this year. Oregon does not allow its governor to fill Senate vacancies via appointment, so the seat has been empty since this year.

“In California, Senator Heston has lost to his younger opponent, Jerry Brown, which is a flip to the Democrats.

“And finally, in Arizona, former Vice President Morris K. Udall has very narrowly defeated the incumbent Republican, Senator Paul Fannin.

“In the House of Representatives, Democrats have lost 19 seats to Republicans, many of which are in the South. Democrats will hold 302 seats going into the 94th Congress, a very wide margin over their Republican opposition.”

1974 Elections
Final Results
House

Democrats: 302 ( 19)
Republicans: 133 ( 19)

Notable freshmen
William J. Clinton (D-AR-03)
Newton L. Gingrich (R-GA-06)
Samuel A. Nunn, Jr. (D-GA-08)
Phyllis M. Schlafly (R-IL-22)
M. Elizabeth A. H. Dole (R-KS-01)
Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT-02)
James E. Chase (D-WA-05)

Senate

Democrats: 69 ( 1)
Republicans: 30 ( 1)
Headed to runoff: 1

Freshmen
Louis Wyman (R-NH)
Bernard Sanders (D-VT)
Shirley Chisholm (D-NY)
Terry Sanford (D-NC)
Either Ivan Allen Jr. (D-GA) or Ronnie Thompson (R-GA), pending runoff
Maurice Britt (R-AR)
Leo Thorsness (R-SD)
John McCandish King (R-CO)
Morris Udall (D-AZ)
Harry Reid (D-NV)
Tom McCall (R-OR)
Jerry Brown (D-CA)

Governors

Democrats: 41 ( 1)
Republicans: 9 ( 1)
Independents: 0 ( 1)

[P. Clodius Pulcher did nothing wrong]

That senate

[Cold War Liberal]

That senate

Awful map for the gop, perhaps on par with OTL 2018 for the Democrats

[GM Team Member and Deputy PPT WB]

NUT

[America Needs R'hllor]

Senators Brown and Reid!

[Elcaspar]

Here's to hoping that Ivan Allen Jr. beats out Ronnie Thompson