State Senate to Review Bill on PR Referendum

A bill to allow a November referendum here on proportional representation comes up again today in the state Senate after having been vetoed by Gov. Peabody.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Denis L. McKenna (D-Somerville) said last night that he saw "a fair chance" of obtaining the two-thirds senate majority needed to override the veto. If the bill clears the Senate, he added, there is "an excellent chance," that it will win the approval of the House.

Peabody returned the PR bill Friday without his signature, explaining that there were already enough questions to be put on the November ballot and that present law allowed another referendum in November, 1965.

McKenna called PR "a ridiculous form of government" and added, "The sooner we do away with it, the better." He expressed the hope that the legislature would vote along party lines, since almost two-thirds of the Senators and Representatives are Democrats.

'Enlightened Action'

Mayor Edward A. Crane '35 praised Peabody's veto last night, calling it an "enlightened action" that he thought would be sustained.

"I don't find a big public demand for this referendum. It looks to me as if its supporters just want to take over the city government," he said. "After 22 years some people have what I call a political hunger."

Crane said he had "no doubt that PR has given us minority representation and majority government." "It's been a great safety valve for Cambridge," he observed.

'Unpredictable'

Although Crane said that the result of a referendum "would be unpredictable," McKenna predicted that PR would be defeated by 1000 votes. In a 1961 referendum--the most recent of four--PR won by 502 votes.

Cambridge today is the only city in the United States that still uses proportional representation, which requires voters to number candidates in order of preference. Originating in Cincinnati, PR was adopted here in 1941.