Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
This file contains:
From Pasztor to Low RE: Status Report on Ethnic Vote in Michigan. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Report], 8/21/1970
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
26144813
label
WHSF: Contested, 5-45
core
doc
dtoType
document
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
26144813
sourceUrl
contentType
document
title
WHSF: Contested, 5-45
description
This file contains:
From Pasztor to Low RE: Status Report on Ethnic Vote in Michigan. 2 pgs. [Subject: Campaign] [Report], 8/21/1970
citationUrl
collections
Richard M. Nixon's Returned Materials Collection
Contested Materials Files
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
source
import
hasTranscription
no
Source extras
naId
26144813
levelOfDescription
fileUnit
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
document
mediaId
3c906df441b6f972
ocrText
Richard Nixon Presidential Library
Contested Materials Collection
Folder List
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
No Date
Subject
Document Type
Document Description
5
45
8/21/1970
Campaign
Report
From Pasztor to Low RE: Status Report on
Ethnic Vote in Michigan. 2 pgs.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Page 1 of 1
DOCUMENT WITHDRAWAL RECORD [NIXON PROJECT]
DOCUMENT
DOCUMENT
NUMBER
TYPE
SUBJECT/TITLE OR CORRESPONDENTS
DATE
RESTRICTION
1
Memo
Pasztor to Low re'. Status
8/21/70
C
Idoc. 267]
Report on the Nationalities
(Nixon)
in Key michigan Races, 2pp
FILE GROUP TITLE
BOX NUMBER
WHSF Smof Dert
9
FOLDER TITLE
1970 Nationalities and Minorities [1082]
RESTRICTION CODES
A. Release would violate a Federal statute or Agency Policy.
E. Release would disclose trade secrets or confidential commercial or
B. National security classified information.
financial information.
C. Pending or approved claim that release would violate an individual's
F. Release would disclose investigatory information compiled for law
rights.
enforcement purposes.
D. Release would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy
G. Withdrawn and return private and personal material.
or a libel of a living person.
H. Withdrawn and returned non-historical material.
NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION
NA FORM 1421 (4-85)
Presidential Materials Review Board
Review on Contested Documents
Collection: Harry S. Dent
Box Number:
9
Folder:
1970 Nationalities and Minorities [1 of 2]
Document
Disposition
267
Return Private/Political
CC: N Dent
Natio
Republican
National
Committee.
August 21, 1970
TO: Bill Low
FROM: Laszlo Pasztor
L.C.N.
SUBJECT: Status Report on the Nationalities in Key Michigan Races
On August 16th, I was a guest at the Nationalities Picnic in De-
troit, Michigan, and met with 50 ethnic leaders from all over the
state. The following is an evaluation, based on meetings and dis-
cussions with these people, of the Romney and Milliken efforts to
attract ethnic voters to the Republican Party.
SENATE- Lenore Romney
I. The average middle-working class ethnic voter has a very nega-
tive image of Lenore Romney, because she has made no attempt
whatsoever to appeal to their interests. Their specific com-
plaints about her campaign were:
A. There seems to be no "ideological" difference between
Mrs. Romney and the liberal incumbent Senator Hart.
B. Mrs. Romney doesn't seem to stand for anything-- if she
discusses issues at all it is only the problems of blacks
that she is concerned about.
C. Mrs. Romney makes no attempt to back up the President or
support the policies of his Administration.
D. They are extremely resentful and fearful of HUD Secretary
Romney's attempts to integrate Michigan suburbia (i.e.,
specifically Warren, outside of Detroit) where the
majority of these people live-- and link Mrs. Romney
directly with this policy.
II. Mrs. Romney does not even give token support to ethnic
Americans:
A. She did not
attend the August 16th Nationalities
picnic in Detroit, even though she had nothing else on
her calendar, based on the fact that she does not cam-
paign on Sundays.
B. No "nationality leaders" or members of the state Nationalities
Council were invited to be members of the steering committee
of Volunteers for Lenore.
C. Even though several prominant members of Nationality groups
volunteered to work on Mrs. Romney's campaign, they
file
told that the only help that they could give was to donate money.
D. "College kids" and "funny looking kids" paper the surface of
her organization.
National Headquarters: 1625 Eye Street NW Washington DC 20006 (202) NA 8-6800.
- 2 -
GOVERNOR-- William Milliken
I.
Governor Milliken also has not campaigned for ethnic votes.
There were many complaints about his liberal and "permissive"
policies, specifically:
A. He does not take a "hard line" on teenage drug abuse and
crime in the streets.
B. His attitude permitted a Rock Festival to be held (Gross
Lake Festival) which was a known rallying point for youth-
ful drug takers, etc.
II. No members of the state Nationalities Council, or any other
ethnic group, were asked to be members of the Volunteers for
Milliken.
SUMMARY
Obviously, no serious campaign has been mounted in Michigan to
attract ethnic voters. Although these voters resent Senator
Hart's own liberalism (and that of the National Democratic
Leadership) their traditional Democratic loyalties are butressed
by well-oiled Democratic patronage machines on the local (par-
ticularly Detroit) level, and apparent interest in ethnic prob-
lems by some state-wide Democratic candidates (Democrats have
placed ads in ethnic newspapers, and "Soapy" Williams is fre-
quently seen at ethnic gatherings and meetings-- even spending
full days at such events). Furthermore, Hart-- our chief target
in Michigan-- has good Union connections and enjoys the respect
of middle-class housewives who remember him for his Truth-in-
Lending and Truth-in-Packaging legislation. Under these strains,
the Republican Nationalities Council of Michigan-- the oldest
in the country-- is slowly beginning to fall apart. They find
no candidate to rally around, and their relatives and associates
wonder what they could possibly gain from voting Republican in
November.
RECOMMENDATIONS
I suggest the following to help remedy this situation:
A. That one person be hired in each campaign to deal with the
ethnic vote.
B. That those people who volunteered to work on the Michigan races
be contacted by the candidates, and sent our Handbook on
Organizing the Nationalities.
C. A list has been provided to the candidates in Michigan giving
the names of all ethnic citizens who volunteered to work on
the campaigns, and they should be contacted individually and
thanked.
In my opinion, both Romney and Milliken have badly handled the
ethnic vote in Michigan. The voters of nationality background
will not support either Mrs. Romney or Governor Milliken if they
do not make an all-out effort to appeal to at least some of their
interests.