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Chapter 36: Ken & Josh's Story, 1960-1962, part 3
Hello everyone!
Sorry that it's been ages! This summer was quite the whirlwind and I did not get the writing time as I'd hoped, and now work and grad school have returned. I'd planned to write a few more sections of the 1960 story and then post them all, but so far I have only done one more section and felt I should go ahead and post it here for you all to read.
I'm still very fond of this TL overall and this story, so I didn't want you all to think it was dead. Hope you enjoy!
Joshua rubbed his temples. It had been a long day, and even at seven o’clock in the evening, it was still far from over. He and Kenneth had been up for over twelve hours now, queueing up at half-past six that morning to cast their ballots. The air was crisp and cool as they’d lined up with their neighbors at their polling station, located inside the parish hall of their local United Episcopal church, St. Hildegard's. Josh had wondered if they’d be first in line when he and Ken left their apartment, but the line was already around the block, and the people chatting in line had been excited. Their neighborhood at the edge of the District of Washington was solidly left-leaning, having largely voted for the Liberals for decades, with a growing insurgency of fellow Communalists in the past few elections. The past twelve years of Nationalist rule had been grueling for Josh and Ken and their neighbors. But everyone seemed pretty sure that this era of turmoil was about to end.
In the voting booth, Josh had proudly and excitedly put his mark next to Georgina Lincoln and her running-mate, Alexandra Clayburn of Mississippi. He knew Ken had done the same in the booth next to him, and suspected many of his fellow voters in the hall had done the same. Sure this district would likely still go Elijah Simpson, the Liberal, but it would be closer than any previous election. This wasn’t the first time Josh had been able to vote for a Communalist for the presidency, of course. He’d voted for Vance Granger in ‘54, and had volunteered for Kieth Conrad in ‘48. But this felt different. With the Nationalists split and the nation fatigued after the twelve-year dual administrations of Nolan and Priest, Lincoln had a real shot at winning outright.
Ballots cast, he and Ken had taken the streetcar downtown, to join up with the party’s contingent in the Election Day parade. Every year since Election Day became a federal holiday in 1912, Franklin and many cities across the nation held large parades celebrating democracy and the American-way. Only the Fourth of July celebrations rivaled the November voting holiday for patriotic grandeur. Union Avenue was bedecked with red, white, and blue bunting. The marchers and floats assembled, as always, in front of Congress Hall at the very north end of the capital’s great north-south axis road. Per tradition, the president’s party marched first, followed by the other parties in alphabetical order, which meant that the CPUS float and marchers were next, followed by the Liberals. Noticeably absent for the first time were the Federalists, their party having collapsed following the 1954 elections and formally dissolving in 1956 after having been a major player in American politics for 167 years.
Josh and Ken both held signs in the parade and marched behind the main party float. Josh’s had said “Vote Lincoln: Vote Renewal,” and Ken’s had been the stylized portrait of Lincoln that had been popularized on the official campaign posters. They were both wearing party-red sweaters, Ken also donning a gold scarf to keep warm. On the float itself stood several prominent Communalist members of Congress, though Georgina Lincoln herself was back in Indianapolis, capital of her home state, participating in that parade, following the standing tradition that none of the presidential candidates take part in the parade in Franklin.
When the Parade made it to the south end of Union Avenue, President’s Square, the marchers formed a large crowd that listened to speeches given by various officials. In 1954, outgoing President Nolan had addressed the crowds, and there had been fear of a riot from some of the anti-Nolan activists. This year, President Priest had opted not to speak. Instead, Vice President Morton gave a cookie-cutter address on the importance of elections as the cornerstone of American democracy. The crowd gave him polite applause (with a few smattering boos) when he finished. They’d been far more enthusiastic when Liberal and Communalists spoke before him, a clear indication that Nationalist Sean Orton was not going to come through the day’s election as the winner.
Parade and speeches over, Josh and Ken had made the trek back north to the CPUS headquarters, where they manned the phones all afternoon, encouraging those still undecided to vote for Lincoln and Clayburn. The polls were now closing across the Eastern Time Zone, and while they remained on the phones calling farther west, the calls were slowing down and more and more attention was being given to the radio and telecinema. At 7:15 p.m., ABN News anchorman Geoffry Talbert announced, “Senator Lincoln has taken the lion’s share of votes in Delaware and New Jersey.” The trend continued, and excitement built. By 8:00, when the polls closed in the Mid-America Time Zone and the phone banks closed for the night, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, the District of Manhattan, and of course Indiana, had all been called for Lincoln, with the CPUS candidate taking strong pluralities in Connecticut, Maine, and Pennsylvania. The trend continued throughout the evening, and the crowd got more and more excited. Josh and Ken were now in the main assembly hall of the headquarters building, all set for a party. They cheered with everyone else when PBC newsreaders announced that Illinois, Mississippi, and Gigadohi were all going for Lincoln. Pluralities in Louisiana, Iowa, and the District of Franklin. The 9:00 hour brought news that Kanasaw had gone for the senator as well. Most of the West would split their votes unevenly but without a majority for any candidate, the former Nationalist stronghold weakened by the fatigue of a nation wanting change. It looked likely that the CPUS would pick up a few electoral votes from almost every western state, even if they didn’t take the majority in any of them.
Shortly after the polls closed in Oregon at 10:00, Geoffry Talbert made the call on ABN: Georgina Lincoln had won the largest share of the national popular vote and was the unofficial winner. A vote transfer from one of the other candidates would be needed to give her an official majority, but that seemed a foregone conclusion. America had just elected its first female and first communalist president! The hall went wild with celebration. Somewhere Josh heard a champagne cork pop and more cheers went up. His attentions were more narrowly focused, however, as Ken grabbed him and gave him a huge kiss. Josh’s heart fluttered a bit. Even here at the CPUS national headquarters, it was still a big deal for Ken to do even hold hands or give a peck kiss on the cheek. Ken broke off the kiss, beaming but also starting to gain a sheepish look.
“I love you, Joshua.” Ken said, looking intently.
“I love you too.” Joshua replied, and kissed him again.
The party lasted for quite some time. Eventually, he and Kenneth slipped out and made their way home. Tomorrow would be a long day, but it had been worth the lack of sleep to witness history.
Although I haven't written any further at the moment, I was able to outline the rest of the story from this point. There are a total of thirty "scenes" currently planned and would take the overall TL up to 1962. We'd see international issues that range from a major showdown with Imperial China to independence movements in Africa, and of course domestic issues relating to the decriminalization of homosexuality. I am still open to ideas of other topics to try and include, even if it's only in passing that can be expounded upon after the story.