The Hawaiian gazette., 1884-10-15
The Election of An o. S. President.

The I. ,. Constitution requires that one
person shall receive a clear majority of all
the Presidential Electors elected. In case
there should be but two candidates and g
tie between them, which is not an impos-
sibiity, or in case there should be more
than two candidates, as there are this year.
and no one of them all receive majority
of all the electoral votes. which majority
is POI, or over, then the election in Nov
ember viii fail to elect President and
viii go to the House of Representatives
for its decision The mode of election by
the House Is peculiar Each State has one
vote and no State more than one vote.
This one vote is cast by the majority of
the Representatives from the State. 1.-THE
representation from any State is equally
divided and cannot agree upon any one
candidate by majority of its Representa-
tiyes, then the vote of such State is lost.
A majority of all the States is required to
elect in the House. Should no candidate
receive majority of all the States in this
House mode of election, then the election
fails, and the President of the Senate.
under existing law, shall be President of
the United States.
As now constituted the Democrats have
a majority Of the States in the House. and
if the election should go to that BODY. be-
yond doubt Cleveland would be elected.
even if he should not have received more
than the 153 Electors of the Southern
States ID November, against 200 for Blaine
and the other forty eight divided between
Butler and St John The chief points to
be borne in mind are these: First, that no
man can be elected in November at the
polls unless he shall receive a majority of
all the Electors. All the Electors number
401 and majority Is 201, or over. Second.
that when the election goes to the House
the voting is by States, each State having
one vote and no more, which vote is cast
by the majority of the Representatives
from each State. The majority of the Rep
resentatives from Ohio are Democrats and
the one vote of that State would go for
Cleveland and Hendricks In the House
though Blaine and Logan should have
carried Ohio in November by 25.O00. The
majority of the Representatives of New
York are also Democrats, and Cleveland
and Hendricks would get the one vote of
that State, Notwithstanding that Blaine
and Logan might have received 100000
the most votes at the November election.
The law requires that the Electors elected
In November shall meet In college in
each State on the first Monday in Deem
Der, following the November election. and
cast and certify and forward their ballot
ings and the result to the President of the
Senate; and that, on the third Wednesday
in February, the President of the Senate
shall open these certificates, and in the
presence Of the Senate and House the
votes shall be counted II the counting
shall result in not giving any Of the can
dldates voted for In November majority
of the Electors, then the election goes to
the House, where it is conducted as above
described.
If the House fails to elect-that Is if no
one candidate receives in the House a ma
jority of all the States-which Is now
twenty there being thirty eight States(.
then the President Of the Senate shall be-
come President Of the United States. and
If there IS no President of the Senate, from
any cause, then the Speaker of the House
becomes President of the United States, In
which latter contingency Mr. Carlisle, the
rank free trader, would be the man. for
the whole business Of making President
must be concluded before the 4th of March.
when the present House of Representa-
lives goes out
It IS apparent from all this that If the
fail ogive Blaine and Logan
ut least 2ol Of the Electors to be electedin