Thomas H. Werdel

CA Blue Book

Date	Party	Office	Votes	Result
11-03-1942	Republican	AD-39	20463	Win
11-07-1944	Republican	AD-39	30422	Win
11-02-1948	Republican	CD-10	67448	Win
11-07-1950	Republican	CD-10	59313	Win
11-04-1952	Republican	CD-14	68011	Loss

Candidate Biography:

Thomas Harold Werdel
Born: September 13, 1905 in Emery, South Dakota
Married: Rosemary Cutter
Children: Tommy, Chuck, and Terry
Died: September 30, 1966 in Bakersfield, CA

1952: Primary Candidate for President (Lost)
1956: [States Rights Party] Candidate for Vice President (Lost)

• CROSSFILING ODDITY: Werdel was defeated in the 1946 Primary in one of the rarest (and strangest) quirks of California election law at that time. It was the age of cross-filing, which allowed candidates to compete in the primaries for multiple political parties within the same district (for example, winning both the Republican AND Democratic primaries). In 1946, Assemblyman Werdel, a Republican, was defeated by Democrat C. L. Tomerlin in the Republican primary by 1,238 to 931. At the same time, Werdel defeated Tomerlin in the Democratic primary by 1,629 to 1,477. Since neither won their own primary, both were ineligible to win the other's primary (and neither was allowed to appear on the ballot). W. E. James was selected by the Republican Central Committee to appear on the ballot, and he won the General Election that November. This happened again in 1948 to Assemblyman Harry J. Johnson.

Source: California Blue Book (1946)
Source: "Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-Present" (U.S. Library of Congress) [http://bioguide.congress.gov/]