ELECTION'92
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Wednesday, November 4, 1992
5
Only the names are the same
By George, Bush City has gone boom to bust
By Stacy Morford Kansan staff writer
Snowflakes fluttered in the eerie silence and drifted through the shattered windows of the once-thriving Bush City Garage. Flakes settled atop a weed-choked gas pump with dials still saying gas costs 55 cents a gallon.
From behind a gray weathered doo-
marked "VOTE HERE," across from
the abandoned service station, came
this dog, this dying town in
has been in years.
"Bush doesn't know what's going on out here in the country," said Jack Spillman, a Bush City hog farmer. "He's done a great job with foreign affairs, but he just doesn't have the people around him to know how the rest of us are living. That's why I'm voting for Perot even though I'm a Republican."
Spillman, his wife, Darlene, and eight others, clustered around the gas heater warming the Minkler School-house yesterday morning, waiting for the clock to strike 7 a.m., when the voting booths opened.
Bush City, about 65 miles south of Lawrence, lies in Anderson County, which is primarily Republican. But the 100 voters in Lincoln Township, which incorporates Bush City, usually vote Democrat, Spillman said.
Most Lincoln Township residents raise crops or cattle, or they work about 10 miles away in Garnett, the county seat. A few still rely on the remaining oil pumps along the Bush
City Shoestring, an oil vein discovered beneath the city in 1923.
"Back in the '20s and '30s this used to really be a boom town," Spillman said. "They had 35 to 40 people living here, and on Saturday the place would be packed. There were a couple grocery stores, so people would have a place to stay for you. They stay for the outdoor movies they used to show out here in the yard."
Bush City has never claimed more than three streets, Spillman said. At its peak, it had more than 20 houses, a bank, a garage, a blacksmith's shop, a Methodist church, and a train depot that sat beside the Kansas, Nebraska and Dakota railway. Only eight houses, five families and four abandoned stores dot the town today.
"All that's left is a bunch of old-timers around here." Spillman said. "I don't know who's going to farm the land when we go. The return on crops is so bad now because of the economy that it's too expensive for these young men to start up farms."
Jack Carr," a Bush City resident, said. "Everybody around here knows everybody else. They know everybody else's business and they just leave them well enough alone. That's why I moved in here — because there isn't anyone around to disturb me."
And Bush City is only getting smaller. Eight of its residents are more than 60 years old, and the other four are moving to Goodrich next year, said Ardena Kilet, supervising judge of the Lincoln Township polls.
Bush City has one polling place — an old schoolhouse that serves 100 people in the area. Each election has about a 100 percent turnout, election officials say.
Doug Hesse / Special to the KANSAN
Democratic candidate does not fill the bill in Clinton Township
By Kristi Fogler
Kansan staff writer
In the summertime thousands of boaters, campers and swimmers make their way through Clinton Township on their way to Clinton Lake. They pass the Clinton Store and the Presbyterian Church.
The store shut down for the winter three weeks ago, and yesterday the church was locked. Clinton went to a clinic in the lake facilities closed last weekend.
But Clinton awoke yesterday, just long enough for its residents to vote. The township was deserted except for at the township hall — where voters gathered in the snow and cold. Inside, five election board judges sat ready to assist one of the 284 registered voters of Clinton Township, an area of at least 15 square miles.
officials
A slow, steady stream of voters entered the hall throughout the day. As of 2:30 p.m. yesterday, about 50 students entered. A ballet for president, state and local
"This township has always had a high percentage voter turnout," said Mary Thomas, supervising election judge.
There had been a line of people at 7 a.m, waiting for the polls to open. For the first time in Clinton's 135-year history, people were waiting to vote, Thomas said. She said people waited 10 to 15 minutes.
"We had one person in line and decided to come back later in the afternoon because she thought it was too busy." Thomas said.
People in Clinton were eager to vote but not for the candidate with the most money.
Even during the rush periods,
Thomas still had time to do cross-
word puzzles, and Joyce Schild,
election judge, had time to knit.
People in Clinton were voting for George Bush.
About 80 percent of the township is registered Republican, Martha Park-
Before Joyce and Al Schild moved to
Clinton 10years ago — after AlSchild, a former professor of education at KU, retired — there were no Democrats serving on the election board. Representatives from both parties must sit on the election board.
"For a while we couldn't get a Democrat to run on the election board," Parker said. "We had to have Republicans serve as Democrats."
Joyce Schild said at the time of last spring's primaries, there were about 100 candidates.
Bill Clinton did not do well in Clinton Township yesterday. Mcl Lisher, Clinton resident, said if Clinton did want to change his ownership would have to change its name.
"I'd rather change it to Bush," he said.
Today the election is over, and the winners have been announced. Clinton Township will fall back asleep.
"People here work in the winter, not much else." Parker said.
"We work, fish and hunt." L学者
sit here and sit here and gripe about
this campfire.
Rachel Ast/Special to the KANSAN
At far left, Kenneth McNeill, also known as "Weasel," from Abate of Kansas Inc., helps with Kids Vote in Clinton Township. Kids Vote is a program that allows children to cast their ballots along with the adults. At near left, Mary Alice Gordon, Clinton resident, and Shannon Curry, 10, vote together. Gordon, who works with the visually impaired, assisted Curry in the Kids Vote after casting her own ballot Tuesday.
Rossville ignores its candidate connection
By J.R. Clairborne
Kansan staff writer
In nearly every yard in this small town are campaign signs. Signs for sherif, state senator and representative, county commissioner and every other county official. In this year, except one — the office of the president.
This town of almost 1,200 has the distinction of sharing something with one of the presidential candidates, the name "Ross."
"Frankly, I don't think anyone has made the connection until now," said Mick Keller, a social studies teacher at Rossville High School. "It might be different if Ross was his last name."
But do the citizens of Rossville sense a bond between themselves and presidential candidate Ross Perot?
Keller's comment was the general sentiment in town concerning the link between Rossville and Perot.
Despite having a name in common with one of the main candidate candidates, the only visible sign
of support for the Texas billionaire was just inside city limits in the form of one a-b-5-sign with blue letters proclaiming, "Vote Peron." However, possibility of a presidential visit was also the only visible presidential sign in town.
Greg Marney, a seventh- and eighth-grade social studies teacher at Rossville Grade School, said that the connection between the two was briefly touched upon by his students during a history discussion. He asked them for namesakes of the town and Perol's name was mentioned.
"I think I did see a Clinton sign nailed to a tree one time," Keller said.
When comparing the track records of the candidates, Keller said he thought none of the candidates had impressed the townpeople. But a mock election was planned for that weekend and the adults seemed apathetic, the students were not.
Keller and his American Government and Speech class organized a mock election at the high school yesterday. He said the idea evolved from discussions of the class study of the complete election process.
"Most conversations about the election, the kids
have initiated them," Keller said. "That's kind of unique for kids 13, 14- and 15-years-old to be that interested in the election."
Perot dominated the mock election, which included faculty and staff, with 57 percent of the vote. Clinton was a distant behind at 22 percent, with Bush directly behind at 21.
Meanwhile, downtown, voters kept City Hall full as they flowed in at a record pace to cast their votes on electronic voting machines.
Divided into two precincts, the voter turnout of the townspeople and the rural residents was more than 80 percent of the 940 registered, including first-timers.
Clarence Wehner, a judge at the registration table, said 50 percent was the average number.
Although not hearing overwhelming support for any of the candidates, Kay Dick, also a judge, said, "I don't know if this has anything to do with Perot, Clinton or Bush, but there have been a lot of first-time voters here, especially a lot of young people. It's obvious to me that people are looking for something different."
Kay Dick, Election Day volunteer, slaps an "I Voted" sticker on the lapel of Rossville voter Larry Martinek. Rossville is located west of Topeka in the northwest corner of Shawnee county.