A Seat in Jeopardy

The Administration lost a supporter in the Senate with the death of Senator Knute Nelson of Minnesota. They hoped to regain the lost seat by having Governor Preus of that state resign and be given a Senatorial appointment by his successor, the present lieutenant governor. In fact, it was erroneously reported that this had happened. It seems, however, that the lieutenant governor balked at the role assigned to him.

The result was that Governor Preus, casting a bucket of cold water on the hopes of the regular Republicans, called a special election on July 16. Now the vacant seat in the Senate will fall to the winner of a three-cornered fight. On one side are the Republicans, not even unanimous among themselves, on account of insurgents in their own ranks; on another are the Democrats; on still a third are the Farmer-Laborites.

With the election to the Senate last fall of Dr. Henrik Shipstead, called by his enemies " the duck-hunting dentist," the fortunes of the Farmer-Labor Party rose. Dr. Shipstead defeated the regular Republican, Senator Kellogg, and the Democratic candidate, Mrs. Peter J. Oleson. Senator La Follette traveled over from Wisconsin to help elect Dr. Shipstead. Sometime between the primaries in June, and the special election in July the Wisconsin Senator is expected to invade Minnesota once more on behalf of the next Farmer-Labor candidate, whoever he may be. Neither Democrats nor regular Republicans look with favor on his prospective journey.