John Fredrick Parker
Donor
What if Eugene Debs had managed to win one in ten votes cast for President in 1912?
So... a national Union of Animal Controllers? Joking aside, if that did happen it could have an affect on legal precident for the right of collective action by public workers, resulting in a stronger and earlier consolidation of things like teacher's unions.Those votes will be geographically concentrated and result in more red dog catchers elected.
Victor Berger might be re-elected in WI-05. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=47014
Meyer London just might win in NY-12 but I doubt it. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=231681 (The Progressive candidate Henry Moskowitz probably got a lot of "advanced" reform voters who might otherwise have voted for London. London did get elected in 1914.)
Morris Hillquit took one-fourth of vote in 1917 New York Mayoral Election, maybe he could do better and win.
In 1918 you could also have Leo Krzycki, Edmund T. Melms, Morris Hillquit, Scott Nearing & Abraham I. Shiplacoff all elected as representatives. Oscar Ameringer probably still couldn't be elected if he ran for the same district, but he could win Berger's district if Berger focused on winning the Senate campaign. That would mean 2 Senators (Miller & Berger) and 10 representatives (London, Gaylord, Wilson, Lunn, Krzycki, Melms, Hillquit, Nearing, Shiplacoff & Ameringer) for the Socialist party of America in 1919.Oh, there were all sorts of Socialists who came close to winning major office at various times, but I was speaking of those who might have been helped in 1912 by a larger Debs vote.
If we're talking about plausible Socialist successes in years other than 1912, the most obvious would be Victor Berger getting elected to the US Senate from Wisconsin in 1918. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=46931 Or Ashley Grant Miller getting elected to the Senate from Nevada in 1916. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=36481 Or Jasper McLevy getting elected Governor of Connecticut in 1938. https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...evy-socialist-governor-of-connecticut.392171/
Or my favorite: future CPUSA leader Charles Ruthenberg getting elected Mayor of Cleveland in 1917 one day before the Bolsheviks seized power in Russia! https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...es-e-ruthenberg-elected-mayor-in-1917.407671/