Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1865-1869, 1865-08-21
RICHMOND WHIG.
MONDAY MORNING....AUG. q, 1865.
THE ELECTION LAWS.

menD of Virginia passed the following act
ON the 22d Of June, 1865
l. Be 1t enacted, ETC., That elections shall
be held in the several Congressional Dis
tricts of this State for representatives in the
Congress of the United States, on the second
Thursday in October, 1866.
2. That elections shall be held on said DAY
in the several counties and corporations in
which such elections have not already been
held for members of the General Assem-
bly,.
8. That the said election shall be held and
conducted, and returns and certificates
thereof made, and the like proceedings had
in relation thereto, IN all respects, as pre-
scribed by existing laws, excepting where
such laws shall be inconsistent with this act.
4. That this act shall be in force from its
passage.
Chapter of the Code of 1860 prescribed
the mode of ascertaining and certifying cleo
tions; but the Legislature at Wheeling, on
the 3Ist of January, 1862, passed an act
changing the manner of examining polls,
etc., which materially modifes q portion Of
the said chapter. If the election law in the
Code had been changed by amendment and
re enactment, as far as desired, instead OF
bv the adoption of changes here and there,
the third section OF the eighth chapter
would read as follows
8. In all cases in elections for election dis
tricts, or Senatorial or Congressional dis
tricts, the Commissioners experimenting the
elections at the court rt-heuses of the several
counties OF corporations forming such dis
tricts shall, within three days after such
election is concluded, deliver q certified
statement of the result of the election In
| said county, to be aScertained [by comparing
| the polls of the different voting places IL
said county, and striking thereirom such
| votes as are required by law to be stricken
therefrom, 1 to the Clerk of the County Court
of such county, whose duty it shall be, as
soon as he may be able, to record such re-
suit in book for that purpose to be kept In
| his office, and transmit a certified copy OF
such result (which shall be written in words,
and not in tigures,) to the Clerk OF the county
Court of the county first named IN the law
describing such districts, whose duty 1t snail
be on certain day appointed by law from
| the commencement of such election, Wmch
certain day Of any election from district OF
a Delegate shall be the fifteenth, OF Senator
| the twentieth, of q Representative in Con-
gress shall be the thirtieth alter such COM
mencement, in the presence OF two Tree
holders, to open and examine sach copies so
| transmitted and compare the returns from
the respective counties, and declare the per-
son having the greatest number OF votes 10
the whole district duly elected in the manner
and form now prescribed by law and snail
record the same in his office, and transmit Il
like COPY to the Clerk of the House to which
such person is elected, to be preserved by
him; which certified copy shall be sufficient
evidence of his election and entitle him to
| his seat.
In contesting elections, reference may be
had by either party to the records of any
county or counties from which from any
causel such returns may not have been re-
ceived or counted by the clerk giving such
certificate.
When parts of counties belong to such dis
tricts, such returns shall be transmitted by
| the officers conducting such elections to the
clerk of the county first named in the dis
trict as aforesaid.
The two preceding paragraphs constitute
the I'd and Sd sections Of the act of January
3lst, 1862. The 4th section makes special
provision for ascertaning the result Of an
election which took place in May 1862. The
5th section repeals call acts aud parts OF acts
inconsistent with the provisions of this act"
In the lst section, as passed, the words
sin the manner now prescribed by law fol-
low the word "ascertained" where 1t first
occurs. We have substituted for them, be-
tween brackets, the unrepealed words which
occur after 'ascertained'' IN the Code (page
SIS, Sd Sec, 5th line.)
The remainder Of the section after the in.
terpolated clause, and "to the are entirely
distinct from the provisions Of the Code, eX-
cept the clause commencing "on certain
day," which now reads in the Code as fol.
| lows:
C. on certain day after that appointed
| by law for the commencement Of such cleo
ton which certain day in the case OF an
election from a district of a delegate shall be
the sth, of a senator shall be the 18th, and
of a representative in Congress shall be the
| 18th after such commencement"
The italicized words, it will be observed,
are omitted from the Wheeling act, and the
time for ascertaining the result OF an elec-
tion is extended. In view Of the Importance
of a correct apprehension of the law, and
uniformity of action on the part of officers
conducting the October election, the Cover
nor should cause special instructions to be
sent to them, and to the clerks Of the coun-
" courts, based upon the act Of January
3lst, 1862.