George Sam Taylor, February 4, 1915 (Pennsylvania) - late 2007/early 2008 (Pennsylvania?)
VP candidate for Socialist Labor Party (aka Industrial Government Party) (1968)
Running mate with nominee: Henning A. Blomen (1910-1993)
Popular vote: 52,589 (0.07%)
Electoral vote: 0/538
The campaign:
The Socialist Labor Party enjoyed a spike in voter interest during the unrest of the 1960s and early 1970s. Eric Hass, who had been the SLP Presidential nominee in every election since 1952 decided to retire from running for office and the top nod went instead to Henning Blomen, who had served as the 1964 VP nominee. The 1968 running-mate was Philadelphia SLP stalwart George Sam Taylor. Between Blomen and Taylor they had run for, and lost, a combined total of nearly 40 elections.
There is surprisingly little information available regarding Taylor, so little in fact that it would be easy to mistakenly assume his moniker was a "party name" rather than his birth name. Aside from listing Taylor as a candidate, the newspapers of his day pretty much ignored his campaigns.
The 1968 SLP platform, once again in long essay form, repeated their consistent condemnation of the capitalist system. But this time it included something of an updated summary as they jockeyed for their place in the growing Leftist wave of the era:
Repudiate the Republican and Democratic parties, the political Siamese twins of capitalism-- and reject also the self-styled "radicals," the so-called New Left and "liberals" whose platforms consist of measures to reform and patch up the poverty-breeding capitalist system, which is past reforming and patching. Study the Socialist Labor Party's Socialist Industrial Union program. Support the Socialist Labor Party's entire ticket at the polls. Unite with us to save humanity from catastrophe-- and to set an example in free nonpolitical self-government for all mankind, in affluence and enduring peace.
On Election Day the Blomen/Taylor ticket finished in 4th place on a very crowded ballot in one the strongest showings in the Party's history. They outpolled all of the other political parties coming from the Left. On the ballot in 13 states their best results were in Colorado 0.37%, Virginia 0.34%, Illinois 0.30%, Massachusetts 0.27% and New Jersey 0.24%.
Election history:
1940 - Pennsylvania Auditor General (Industrial Government Party) - defeated
1944 - Pennsylvania Auditor General (Industrial Government Party) - defeated
1946 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1950 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Industrial Government Party) - defeated
1956 - US Senator (Penn.) (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1958 - US Senator (Penn.) (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1959 - Mayor of Philadelphia, Penn. (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1960 - Pennsylvania Auditor General (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1962 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1963 - Mayor of Philadelphia, Penn. (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1964 - US Senator (Penn.) (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1966 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1967 - Mayor of Philadelphia, Penn. (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1970 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1971 - Mayor of Philadelphia, Penn. (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1974 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1978 - Governor of Pennsylvania (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
1980 - US Senator (Penn.) (Socialist Labor Party) - defeated
Other occupations: machinist, assistant production manager, electronics technician
Buried: ?
Notes:
Winner of the 1958 and 1964 races was Hugh Scott.
Winner of the 1962 race was William Scranton.
Winner of the 1970 and 1974 races was Milton Shapp.
Winner of the 1971 race was Frank Rizzo.
Listed by politicalgraveyard.com as one the "Politicians who lost the most elections"
Winner of the 1980 race was Arlen Specter
One of his opponents in the 1959 race was Harold Stassen
1967 election was apparently a write-in effort for Taylor.
