The election of the President falls to the House of Representatives in that situation, IIRC...and even then, Truman probably still wins. Then again, I'm not attuned to the finer points of the ratio of votes per state to Democratic representation in the House in '48, according to the provisions of the amendment, so I could be wrong.
Let's see, if we went straight along Party Lines regarding the vote we would get:
- Republican: 19
- Democrat: 25
- Split: 4
Which means that Harry Truman and Alben Barkley would get through with ease in such a scenario. However that is unlikely since I imagine many Congressmen from the South would be unwilling to support Truman unless he were willing to remain silent on Civil Rights, something which I cannot see him willing to agree on except under extreme pressure. In this case then it is possible that Thomas Dewey might win instead if he were to make a similar promise, though whether he would keep it would be a different matter, and having Barkely as his Vic President would be interesting.
The election of the President falls to the House of Representatives in that situation, IIRC...and even then, Truman probably still wins. Then again, I'm not attuned to the finer points of the ratio of votes per state to Democratic representation in the House in '48, according to the provisions of the amendment, so I could be wrong.
EDIT: Never mind, forgot that the Twentieth Amendment changed which Congress elects the new President.
In any case: I could certainly see the Dixiecrats holding Truman hostage over Civil Rights. If he gives in, it might lead blacks (who trended towards the Democrats under FDR) back to the Republicans. But, blacks might trend back to the Democrats any how if Civil Rights legislation is ultimately pushed for and passed under a Democratic President.
Sounds like a winner!And when pro-civil rights leaders like Dirksen come to power within the GOP, this will keep happening. It could result in a socially liberal GOP, and a split Democratic Party.