The elections are over. Winners have been congratulated, losers have been consoled. It’s time to relax.
WRONG!! There are all these campaign buttons that need identifying.
Every so often we come across campaign buttons for candidates we’ve never heard of. How do we identify who they are? And when we see a “Smith for Congress” or a “Jones for Senator” button, well, how do we know which Smith or which Jones? That’s where you come in.
We’ve been offering photos of these unknown buttons (arranged alphabetically by candidate names) for you to help identify. And you’ve done an amazing job. (Previous “Who Dats”: Unknowns beginning with the Letter A, Letter B, two pages for Letter C (here and here), Letter D, Letter E and Letter F.
And now we’re back with another selection of campaign items of candidates, this time focusing on the letter “G.” As in, G Whiz, who the heck ARE these guys??
(Hey, Goldwater collectors: I betcha you never saw that button in the second row before!)
(BTW, that bottom Democratic donkey tab reads “Re-elect ‘Jim’ Graham.”)
Thanks for your help!
144 = Gross. Nelson or H. R.?
I don’t think either; I think the button is much later since the last time Nelson (1970) or H.R. (1972) ran.
Could it be Doug Gross, then? He was the GOP nominee for Governor of Iowa against Vilsack in 2002.
“Go with Glenn” possibly refers to John Glenn, who was elected several times (having lost once in a primary) to the U.S. Senate from Ohio, serving for 24 years.
Since 144 = 1 gross, “Vote 144” likely references 13-term Congressman H.R. Gross of Iowa, who delighted in introducing House of Representatives bills numbered “H.R. 144”.
Douglas, the Glenn button has a Pittsburgh address on the curl, so I’m thinking it’s a Pennsylvania item. Also, I don’t think this is an H.R. Gross button, or a Nelson Gross (N.J. GOP Senate candidate 1970) item either.
Morry Greener?
I suspect the “Go for Gary” button may refer to Raymond Gary, the successful Democratic candidate for governor in Oklahoma in 1954. I was small at the time and do not recall the button but I believe “Go for Gary” was his slogan
No, this button is much more recent than that; probably 1980s or so.
GROGAN for Congress – Hoboken Mayor Grogan was either a primary candidate or hopeful primary candidate in the 1950’s or 1960’s
“Let’s keep Gene….” Eugene McCarthy, maybe
Hi Ken:
The “Guerin Lt. Governor” is for John Guerin who was on the 1976 Republican ticket in Rhode Island. He lost to Thomas J. DiLuglio (Democrat).
“Gorman” – perhaps former Mayor Bill Gorman of Hazard, Kentucky
Mary Etta Gooding was the Dem nominee for Delaware State Treasurer, 1968. (See Celia Cohen, Only in Delaware, p. 472.)
Powell “Red” Glass Jr. was the grandson of Sen. Carter Glass. In 1954, he lost the Dem primary in Virginia 6 to Del. Ernest Robertson, who lost in November to incumbent Richard Poff. (See “Dems Name 2 in Virginia,” Toledo Blade, 7/14/54, p.3. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=8_tS2Vw13FcC&dat=19540714&printsec=frontpage&hl=en )
Oren Gray challenged incumbent Rep. Myron George in the Kansas 3 Republican primary in 1956. He lost. (See “Close Battle Waged for Fifth District Congressional Seat,” Lawrence Journal-World, 8/8/56, p. 5. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2199&dat=19560808&id=JgdGAAAAIBAJ&sjid=X-oMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6986,2406175 ) He later served as a state representative, 1965-73. https://kslib.info/BusinessDirectoryii.aspx?ysnShowAll=0&lngNewPage=0&txtLetter=&txtZipCode=&txtCity=&txtState=&txtBusinessName=gray+oren&lngBusinessCategoryID=0&txtCustomField1=&txtCustomField2=&txtCustomField3=&txtCustomField4=&txtAreaCode=
Clinton Gowdy of Springfield, MA appears to have been one of several candidates for the nomination for Attorney General at the GOP state convention in 1905. (See “Big Crowd Expected,” Boston
Evening Transcript, 10/5/05, p. 2. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2249&dat=19051005&id=giE0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=XeEIAAAAIBAJ&pg=4958,513932 )
“Elect Gorman mayor” — It’s impossible to be certain, but Cuyahoga County Commissioner Joseph F. Gorman, a Democrat, ran for mayor of Cleveland in 1935. He finished fourth in the nonpartisan primary, losing to Harold H. Burton, ex-mayor Ray Miller, and incumbent mayor Harry Davis. (See “Davis Beaten in Huge City Vote; Burton, Miller Win Nominations,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, 10/2/35.)
“I am a Greenlee man” — Pleas Greenlee, executive secretary to Indiana Gov. Paul McNutt, was a candidate for the Dem gubernatorial nomination at the 1936 state convention. (See Wm. Franklin Radcliff, Sherman Minton: Indiana’s Supreme Cpurt Justice, pp. 36-37, 64-65.) I don’t know if he ever ran for anything else.
“Gibson for Governor” — This last one’s a pure guess. Ernest W. Gibson was elected Governor of Vermont in 1946 and 1948, serving until 1950 when Truman appointed him to the Federal bench.
Oren Gray challenged incumbent Rep. Myron George in the Kansas 3 Republican primary in 1956. He lost. (See “Close Battle Waged for Fifth District Congressional Seat,” Lawrence Journal-World, 8/8/56, p. 5. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2199&dat=19560808&id=JgdGAAAAIBAJ&sjid=X-oMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6986,2406175 ) He later served as a state representative, 1965-73.
(stuck in moderation; reposted)
“Let’s Keep Gene in Congress” is Congressman Gene Snyder from Kentucky. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Snyder You can see a different version of the button here http://ronwade.freeservers.com/LocalsKY.html
In 1892, ex-Mayor John J. Geraghty of Streator, IL was one of three candidates for the Dem nomination for Congress in Illinois 8. He placed third at the district convention behind Lewis Steward and Edward Clover. (See “Steward and Eades; Named by the Democracy for Congress and Board of Equalization,” Ottawa (IL) Free Trader, 8/6/1892. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2289&dat=18920806&id=H0woAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fgUGAAAAIBAJ&pg=723,3895713 )
“Gunderson for Governor” — Seems likely that it’s Carl Gunderson (R-SD), who was elected governor in 1924, defeated in 1926, and made an unsuccessful comebak try in the 1932 GOP primary.