The Middle Voter

Shortly before the campaign began in earnest, Political Statisticians Richard Scammon and Ben Wattenberg published a book, The Real Majority, that was to underscore President Nixon's 1970 strategy. The typical American voter, the authors argued, could be found at the political center. They sketched a portrait: "The Middle Voter is a 47-year-old housewife from the outskirts of Dayton whose husband is a machinist." Scammon and Wattenberg did not have a real person in mind, but a Dayton newspaper and the local machinists' union decided that she was Mrs. Bette Lowrey of suburban Fairborn. In an article about her in LIFE, she declared herself deeply troubled about drugs, violence and other "social issues," but she was not sure that the Agnew line provided the answer.

So how did she vote? Mrs. Lowrey, a registered Democrat, voted the straight party line. Although she has split her ticket in the past, the demands of her newly acquired celebrity status left her no time to "study the issues." Explained Mrs. Lowrey: "When in doubt, stick to your party."

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