However, the division of the Democratic Party over the Ku Klux Klan – which at the time all but ruled Oregon with its reputation for fanatical racism and anti-Catholicism – alongside maverick veteran Wisconsin Senator Robert La Follette’s decision to mount a third-party presidential campaign ensured by late summer that the Republicans would be unchallenged in carrying Oregon, especially after La Follette denounced the Klan, which was highly popular amongst working Oregonians.