Monday Lesson From History

On June 28, 1941 Lyndon Johnson was about to become the youngest senator in Texas history.  The day of the election, emboldened by a large vote lead from early precinct reporting, he allowed his staff to publicly release the numbers of votes he was in front.  At his campaign headquarters, his staff began partying and carrying him around on their shoulders in victory.  But it was not to be.  In the cutthroat world of Texas politics, and early vote count only served to tell your opponent how many votes they would need to ‘find’ in order to secure their own victory.  And that is exactly what happened.  LBJ’s opposition had enough time to collect just enough votes secure a comfortable lead. Governor W. Lee “Pappy” O’Daniel would be the next senator from Texas, and LBJ would learn the lesson of celebrating too early.  This is most visible in the world of sport, and one that never seems to be fully appreciated.