Trivia: Just One Vote

Bellaire Historic Society P.O. Box 854, Bellaire, TX 77402

!	Trivia: Just One Vote

The excuse heard most often for not voting in elections is "my vote won't make a difference." History is full of instances proving the enormous power of Just One Vote. In some cases, the course of nations have been changed because of Just One Vote. Consider these cases in history where Just One Vote made a significant difference

In 1645, Just One Vote resulted in Oliver Cromwell becoming Lord Protector of England.
In 1649, Just One Vote failed to prevent the execution of Charles I of England.
In 1714, Just One Vote placed King George I on the throne of England.
In 1776, Just One Vote resulted in the United States adopting the English language instead of German.
In 1793, Just One Vote failed to prevent the execution of King Louis XVI.
In 1800, Just One Vote elected Thomas Jefferson president of the United States following an electoral tie vote.
In 1824, Just One Vote elected John Quincy Adams president of the United States following an electoral tie vote.
In 1839, Just One Vote was the margin of victory for Marcus Morton Governor of Massachusetts.
In 1844, Just One Vote elected David Kelso State Senator in Indiana.
In 1845, Just One Vote resulted in Texas becoming a state in the United States
In 1846, Just One Vote was the margin resulting in war being declared against Mexico.
In 1850, Just One Vote resulted in California becoming a state in the United States
In 1859, Just One Vote was the margin of victory in favor of Oregon becoming a state in the United States.
In 1867, Just One Vote resulted in the purchase of the Alaska territory.
In 1868, Just One Vote failed to impeach President Andrew Johnson.
In 1875, Just One Vote resulted in France changing from a monarchy into a republic.
In 1875, Just One Vote elected Charles W. Jones of Florida to the United States Senate.
In 1876, Just One Vote elected Rutherford B. Hayes president of the United States following an electoral tie.
In 1885, Just One Vote elected Robert W. Davis of Florida to be Speaker of the State house.
In 1889, Just One Vote resulted in Washington becoming a state in the United States.
In 1890, Just One Vote resulted in Idaho becoming a state in the United States.
In 1911, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in the passage of women's suffrage in California.
In 1916, Just One Vote per precinct in California resulted in the election of President Woodrow Wilson.
In 1923, Just One Vote resulted in Adolf Hitler gaining leadership in the German Nazi Party.
In 1940, Just One Vote in the French Parliament failed to maintain its status as a Republic.
In 1941, Just One Vote saved the selective service system, just days before the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
In 1948, Just One Vote elected Lyndon Johnson United States Senator from Texas.
In 1948, Just One Vote per precinct in Ohio and California elected President Harry Truman.
In 1955, Just One Vote resulted in the election of the mayor of Huron, Ohio.
In 1959, Just One Vote resulted in the election of the mayors of both Rose Creek and Odin, Minnesota.
In 1960, Just One Vote per precinct in only four states resulted in the election of John F. Kennedy president of the United States.
In 1962, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in the election of the Governors of Maine, Rhode Island and North Dakota.
In 1968, Just One Vote per city block resulted in the election of Richard Nixon President of the United States.
In 1971, Just One Vote resulted in a loss by John Gorton as Liberal Party leader and Prime Minister of Australia.
In 1978, Just One Vote elected a State Senator in Alaska.
In 1978, Just One Vote per neighborhood resulted in the recall of the city council in Bellaire, Texas.
In 1982, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in the election of James Thompson, Governor of Illinois.
In 1984, Just One Vote resulted in the election ofthe mayor of Athens, AL and a county Commissioner in Monroe County FL.
In 1986, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in the election of a State Senator in Alaska.
In 1989, Just One Vote was the margin in the loss of a public school tax rollback election in Lansing, Michigan.
In 1992, Just One Vote resulted in a primary nomination for a Madison County Commissioner.
In 1992, Just One Vote elected a member to the city council in Trinity, Alabama.
In 1993, Just One Vote resulted in the largest tax increase for American Citizens in United States history.
In 1994, Just One Vote elected Randall Luthi to the Wyoming State House of Representatives.
In 1994, Just One Vote in each precinct elected three precinct chairmen in Houston, Texas.
In 1995, Just One Vote resulted in the failure of the Balanced Budget Amendment in the United States Senate.
In 1996, Just One Vote elected a member of the Limestone County Board of Education.
In 1997, Just One Vote resulted in a loss by Sydney Nixon to the Vermont State House of Representatives.
In 1997, Just One Vote elected Hal Wick to the South Dakota State House of Representatives.
In 1998, Just One Vote per subdivision resulted in the election of a State representative in Houston, Texas.
In 1998, Just One Vote per precinct elected Donald Sherwood from Pennsylvania to the U.S. House of Representatives.
In 1999, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in the election of Leslie Byrne to the Virginia State Senate.
In 1999, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in the election of Mark Goldberg to the city council in Houston, Texas.
In 2000, Just One Vote in each precinct in Florida resulted in the election of George W. Bush, president of the United States
In 2002, Just One Vote per precinct resulted in a primary nomination for Wayne Smith and Martha Wong in Harris County Texas.
In --?-, Just One Vote ... could be your vote, a vote that makes the difference between victory and defeat.

A final word about "Trivia: Just One Vote." The Greek Philosopher Plato said, "The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." Eighteenth century British Statesman, Edmund Burke said, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Thomas Jefferson said, "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, it expects what never was and never will be." Did you know that in the United States, fewer than one-tenth of one per-cent of qualified Americans voted in each election in which they were eligible to vote during any ten year period in the last half century? Think about these things as we approach the next election and the importance of Just One Vote. Remember that your vote or the vote of someone you influence could be the vote that makes a difference.

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