100 years ago in Spokane: Harding easily won in local polls — except at these three spots

The Spokane Daily Chronicle’s political poll – called a “test ballot” – showed Republican presidential candidate Warren G. Harding winning in a landslide over Democrat James M. Cox.

The total was 2,108 votes for Harding and 963 for Cox.

The Chronicle had distributed thousands of the test ballots to gathering places all over the city – theaters, lodge halls, department stores, unions, office buildings and industrial plants. The paper even handed out ballots on streetcars.

Cox won in only three locations: a Hillyard railroad shop, a Sons of Norway lodge and a “card party given by a women’s auxiliary at a local lodge.”

With the benefit of hindsight, this result was not surprising. Harding went on to win in a landslide, with 60% of the vote nationwide. Harding won Spokane County by an even higher margin and easily won the state.

From the land-use beat: A proposed zoning plan for Spokane was assailed as “highly socialistic” by upset landowners and business people.

City planning expert Charles H. Cheney drafted the plan, but its chances of being adopted were close to zero, judging by the reaction of the property owners.

“It’s socialistic because it says to the property owner, ‘You go ahead and pay the taxes and we’ll run your property for you,’ ” said Julius Zittel, a prominent Spokane architect.