For representative, S. W. Hamill, democrat, was chosen. R. F. Sturdevant, republican, and J. E. Edmiston, democrat, seem to have been almost constantly pitted against each other, and at this time the latter won the superior judgeship over the former. The county officers chosen were as follows: Sheriff, A. H. Weatherford; auditor, A. P. Cahill; clerk, Garl Taylor; treasurer, W. A. Newman; commissioners, I. N. E. Rayburn and R. H. McHargue, democrats, and L. M. Vannice, republican; assessor, W. J. Honeycutt; attorney, W. H. Fouts. republican; superintendent of schools, Charles H. Terpening; surveyor, T. B. Hicks; coroner, Dr. E. H. Van Patten.
Although there was a tie in Columbia County on vote for senator, and although the democratic candidate for superior judge received a majority, yet in both cases the republican had a majority in the district, composed of Columbia, Garfield and Asotin, and therefore Mr. Kellogg and Mr. Sturdevant occupied those places respectively.
The election of 1894, coming in the very midst of the hardest of the "hard times"—floods, strikes, Coxey armies, bank failures, "30-cent wheat," and general turmoil—was reflected in the great gain in the populistic ranks. This was largely a revolt of democrats against the Cleveland administration, very much as the election of 1892 was a revolt against the extreme tariff and other alleged "monopoly" tendencies of the Harrison administration.
The result was the triumph of the republican candidates, in the triangular conflict. Every position showed a republican triumph. W. H. Doolittle and S. C. Hyde received 677 and 671 votes respectively, while B. F. Heuston and N. T. Caton, democrats, had to be content with 420 and 417, outrun by the populists, W. P. C. Adams and J. C. Van Patten, with 426 and 446. Cornelius Lyman was chosen representative with 668 to 510 for M. M. Godman. The county officials were: Sheriff, Conrad Knobloch; auditor, A. P. Cahill; treasurer, J. H. Fudge; clerk, J. L. Mohundro; attorney, W. H. Fouts; assessor, R. F. Matkin; superintendent of schools, H. B. Ridgeley; coroner, Dr. G. M. Burns; commissioners, C. M. Grupe and Granville Hewitt.
The election of 1896 was characterized by a sweeping reversal of its predecessor. That was the year of the "Peerless Leader" with his "Cross of Gold." A new deal was on and the old democracy was slipping to its final doom. A new democracy, under the oriflamme of the People's Party, a real democracy this time, instead of the pseudo-democracy of the southern slave baron and aristocrat, was making its appeal East and West, but especially West, the logical home of genuine democracy. Fusion tickets and fusion conventions of democrats, silver republicans, and populists, "three-ring circuses" as they were styled by stand-patters, marked that great political campaign of 1896. In Columbia County the triune ticket agreed on by three conventions meeting simultaneously on September 10th apportioned nominations, so that representative, auditor, sheriff and superintendent of schools were of the populists; attorney, assessor, clerk, surveyor, coroner and county commissioners went to the democrats; the silver republicans were cut rather short with the solitary assignment of treasurer.
The combination adopted the usual designation of People's Party. In the election the republicans saved from the general wreck only the clerk and sheriff, by scanty majorities. The total vote was 1,623, somewhat in excess of any cast in the county up to that date.
The vote was as follows: The Bryan electors 847, the McKinley electors, 776; James Hamilton Lewis and W. C. Jones for Congress and John R. Rogers for governor; joint senator, J. C. Van Patten; representative, George Windust; judge Superior Court, M. M. Godman; sheriff, Conrad Knobloch; clerk, J. L. Mohundro; auditor, Dick Harper; treasurer, G. A. Parker; attorney, E. W. Clark; assessor, G. W. Page; superintendent of schools, Mrs. Ella Terpening; surveyor, Ira Trescott; coroner, E. H. Van Patten; commissioners, J. H. McCauley and J. C. Marckley.
The election of 1898 witnessed the same alignment, republicans against the "fusion" of populists, democrats and silver republicans.
The result, however, was another reversal, and all the places were filled by republicans, with the single exception of superintendent of schools. The vote resulted thus: W. L. Jones and F. W. Cushman for Congress; T. A. Anders and Mark A. Fullerton for Supreme Court; representative in Legislature, C. S. Jerard; sheriff, J. D. Smith; clerk, L. L. Ellis; auditor, H. E. Gilham; treasurer, F. W. Guernsey; attorney, W. H. Fouts; assessor, J. F. Porter; superintendent of schools, Mrs. Ella Terpening; surveyor, Ira Trescott; coroner, G. M. Burns; commissioners, Alexander Duffy and Cornelius Lyman.
The election of 1900 made it seem that the "fusion" formation was down and out, for the republicans carried the field by large or good majorities for every candidate. Results thus appear: Electors for McKinley 899 to 712 for those of Bryan; W. L. Jones and F. W. Cushman for Congress; J. M. Frink for governor by 835 to 760 for Governor Rogers; joint state senator, Edward Baumeister; representative, C. S. Jerard; judge Superior Court, C. F. Miller; sheriff, J. D. Smith; clerk, L. L. Ellis; auditor, H. E. Gilham; treasurer, F. W. Guernsey; attorney, R. B. Brown; assessor, J. F. Porter; superintendent of schools, W. W. Hendron; coroner, J. W. McLachlan; commissioners, Cornelius Lyman and Richard Jackson.