Description: This sample ballot was issued by Daniel J. Ryan, Ohio Secretary of State, before the election of November 3, 1891, intended to illustrate to Ohioans "the form of a state ballot under the new election law of Ohio." An explanation is given for voting a "straight ticket" (voting for all of the candidates put forth by one political party without having to mark each one on the ballot), as well as for individual candidates or propositions. The general voting process is outlined as well. Political parties represented in this election were the Republican, Democratic, Prohibition, and People's parties. An emblem decorates the top of each column; an eagle with arrows in its talons (Republican Party), a rooster (Democratic Party), a rose (Prohibition Party) and a plow (People's Party). William McKinley was the Republican candidate for governor, and would be elected over the incumbent James Campbell by a margin of over 20,000 votes. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: OVS4678_01
Subjects: Ballots; Election Day; Ohio--Politics and government; Political parties; McKinley, William, 1843-1901; Voting;
Places: Ohio
 

Description: These six photographs show Warren Harding voting in 1920. The first three images show Warren Harding at the voting booth; the fourth image shows Warren Harding in line with his wife, Florence, standing in line to vote. The fifth image shows Florence Harding turning in her ballot, and the final image shows Warren Harding turning in his ballot. Florence Harding was the first First Lady to vote, following the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, which granted women the right to vote. Warren Gamaliel Harding (1865-1923) was born in Corsica (now called Blooming Grove), a small town in Morrow County, Ohio. Harding graduated from Ohio Central College in Iberia at the age of sixteen. His family moved to Marion, where Harding taught school and briefly studied law. He worked occasionally as a reporter for a local paper before buying the Marion Star in 1884. Within five years, the Star was one of the most successful small-town newspapers in the state. Harding became popular as the leader of the Citizen's Coronet Band, which played at political rallies, and for his skill as an orator. Willing to follow the lead of political bosses, Harding advanced rapidly in Ohio politics, serving as state senator and lieutenant governor. In 1914 Harding was elected to the U. S. Senate. He launched his famous "front porch" 1920 presidential campaign from the porch of his Victorian home in Marion, Ohio. He won the presidency with sixty percent of the popular vote, promising a "return to normalcy" following the wave of reforms begun during Theodore Roosevelt's administration. As President, Harding appointed several friends to federal office who proved untrustworthy. His administration was tainted by corruption, and the infamous "Teapot Dome" scandal (in which Harding's Secretary of the Interior leased a U.S. petroleum reserve to a private oil company) nearly destroyed his presidency. After he died in office in August 1923, other scandals were uncovered, further tarnishing Harding's reputation. First Lady Florence Harding (1860-1924) was born Florence Mabel Kling in Marion, where her father was a successful businessman. Her first marriage ended in divorce in 1886. In 1891, she married Warren G. Harding and went to work in the circulation department of her husband's newspaper. Florence Harding was a strong supporter of her husband's political career. As First Lady, Harding reopened the White House to the public; it had been closed when previous president Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke. The couple had no children. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Page1
Subjects: Ohio women; Presidents and Politics; Presidential elections; Harding, Warren G. (Warren Gamaliel), 1865-1923; Harding, Florence Kling, 1860-1924; First ladies; Voting; Suffrage; Ballots
Places: Marion (Ohio); Marion County (Ohio)