I, Candidate for Governor: And How I Got Licked

by Upton Sinclair, James Gregory (Introduction)

Here, reprinted for the first time since its original publication, is muckraking journalist Upton Sinclair's lively, caustic account of the 1934 election campaign that turned California upside down and almost won him the governor's mansion.

Using his "End Poverty in California" movement (more commonly called EPIC) as a springboard, Sinclair ran for governor as a Democrat, equipped with a bold plan to end the Depression in California by taking over idle land and factories and turning them into cooperative ventures for the unemployed. To his surprise, thousands rallied to the idea, converting what he had assumed would be another of his utopian schemes into a mass political movement of extraordinary dimensions. With a loosely knit organization of hundreds of local EPIC clubs, Sinclair overwhelmed the moderate Democratic opposition to capture the primary election. When it came to the general election, however, his opposition employed highly effective campaign tactics: overwhelming media hostility, vicious red-baiting and voter intimidation, high-priced dirty tricks. The result was a resounding defeat in November.

I, Candidate tells the story of Sinclair's campaign while also capturing the turbulent political mood of the 1930s. Employing his trademark muckraking style, Sinclair exposes the conspiracies of power that ensured big-money control over the media and other powerful institutions.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics, Memoir, Biography

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1934

About the author

Upton Beall Sinclair, Jr. was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle (1906). To gather information for the novel, Sinclair spent seven weeks undercover working in the meat packing plants of Chicago. These direct experiences exposed the horrific conditions in the U.S. meat packing industry, causing a public uproar that contributed in part to the passage a few months later of the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act. The Jungle has remained continuously in print since its initial publication. In 1919, he published The Brass Check, a muckraking exposé of American journalism that publicized the issue of yellow journalism and the limitations of the “free press” in the United States. Four years after the initial publication of The Brass Check, the first code of ethics for journalists was created. Time magazine called him "a man with every gift except humor and silence." In 1943, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

Sinclair also ran unsuccessfully for Congress as a Socialist, and was the Democratic Party nominee for Governor of California in 1934, though his highly progressive campaign was defeated.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 1934 election for California governor was historically significant for many reasons and nothing brings it to life and makes you realize the horrible state of the American democracy and economy than this first person account by Upton Sinclair.

[Julesreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t finish, but read more than half. gets boring and not even all that revelatory after the explanation of the EPIC plan. Still decent enough.

[Riley Kane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely funny, well thought out, and supremely threatening account of a jumbled system that, even in times of desperate need, seems to have it out for Mr. Sinclair.

I enjoyed his writing style. It wasn't overly formal, even when describing production for use and his other ideas. There doesn't seem to be one timeline that he follows, but there are reoccurring "characters" as you would. This doesn't seem to be a problem, as Sinclair rarely lets this get in the way of the real issues. I found the inclusion of the political cartoons resourceful for my understanding of the situation.

This is a sharp book, and one everyone should read at some point. You can have my stars, Mr. Sinclair! Very epic!