One lesson from Mississippi: Every vote counts

Thad Cochran must feel very grateful to Thomas L. Carey. He’s the candidate whose 1.52 percent of the vote in the June 3 primary prevented the six-term Mississippi senator from losing the Republican nomination to state Sen. Chris McDaniel, who received 1,418 more votes.

Mississippi, like most Southern states, requires a candidate to win 50 percent of the primary vote to get a party’s nomination; these requirements hark back to the days when the Democratic nomination was considered (as they always used to say) tantamount to election (have you ever heard or read the word tantamount’ in any other context?).