>>isn't it obvious what happened in 1946
The Communist Party devoted energy and resources to electoral campaigns starting in 1922. Party leaders did not expect to win, but they expected members and followers to support the ticket. Election tallies thus provide an indication of how many voting age citizens were loyal Party supporters in any year and place. Communist candidates were able to win about 100,000 votes in several elections during the 1930s and in Senate races in 1940 topped 115,000. These figures may serve as best estimates of the numbers of CP loyalists during party's heyday. The maps and charts show the geography of party strength, detailing the number of votes for Communist Party candidates for each county and every electoral contest from 1922 to 1946.
https://depts.washington.edu/moves/CP_map-votes.shtml