Democratic majority cut
Washington (UP) –
The Democratic Party was threatened with loss of voting control of the House today when Rep. Joseph A. Gavagan (D-NY) resigned to cut party membership to 217 and leave it with the narrowest majority since 1931.
The division of the House is now 217 Democrats, 208 Republicans, four independents and six vacancies which will be filled by special elections.
Two Pennsylvania seats will be settled Jan. 18. One was formerly held by a Republican and the other by a Democrat, but observers predict the GOP will capture both.
Soldier vote proponents aided
Washington (UP) –
Congressional leaders declared today that prospects of a bitter fight over soldier-vote legislation were only slightly lessened by President Roosevelt’s assertion that absentee voting for servicemen could not be effective without participation by the federal government.
Proponents of federal participation, nevertheless, welcomed the support given them in the President’s message to Congress and his fireside address to the nation last night. They said it should help considerably in beating down charges that a federal plan would violate both states’ rights and the Constitution.