The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1891-03-26
The Election Of Senators by Direct
Vote.

hC pan Va hoNiuk tuo Ctoto COuNoH-
ion nominate the candidate for United
States Senator is being warmly discussed
among the Republican papers Of the
State and seems to meet with pretty
general, though not universal, favor.
There has been for some time growing
with the manner of elect
ing United States Senators and every
year brings some new and stronger
grounds for opposition to it. 1t was ev.
identity the purpose of the Constitution
to make the Senate more permanent
and conservative body than the House
and to raise it out of the reach of sudden
fluctuations of popular opinion. This
was done by giving each State two SEN
ators without respect to population. In
order to remove the Senate still farther
from the people the power to elect Sem
ators was given to the Legislature Of the
States. In this, however, ex-
perience has proven that they went too
far. Repeated instances have been
known in which men have been elected
to the Senate who could never have car.
ried the State if it had been submitted
to popular vote. In many cases the
legislature is elected without any in
structions as to whom they shall vote
for for Senator. This leaves the mem-
bers free to use their own choice and
not infrequently opens the way to brib-
cry and undue influence. Payne un-
doubtedly bought the votes which elect
ed him to his present seat in the Senate
and Brice will probably have an oppor-
tunity before he gets safely seated there
OF denying or confessing that he paid
for his election.
But, granting that each member Of the
legislature votes honestly, it may still
not be true that they will elect the man
whom the majority Of the people prefer.
Yet it is especially important that the
Senator should directly represent the
choice of the people from the fact that
his vote counts for much more than
that of member of the House and also
from the fact that his term of Office is
three times as long. The people are
made to feel in many cases that their
Senators do not represent them and do
not feel any responsibility to them.
Hence an increasing demand that the
Senators be elected directly by the peo-
pie. This of course can only be done
by amending the United States Consti.
tuition, although the end might be part.
ly attained by the plan which has been
suggested of allowing the party conven.
tions to name candidate for Senator
and then pledging each candidate for
the legislature to vote for the party can.
didate as was done in the, celebrated
Douglass-Lincoln campaign in Illinois
While this comes nearer expressing the
popular choice it will be seen that there
is still possibility that the side which
had the largest popular vote might not
carry the legislature. The majority o
the popular vote does not always cores
pond with the majority of the electoral
vote. That has happened in Presidential
elections and might happen, as it fire.
quently does, in the election of legisla
lures which have the choosing OF Sena
tors.
Another objection is that the choosing
of Senator is only small part of the
duty of the legislature, only an incidenta
part. They should be chosen with es
pecial reference to their fitness as legis
lators. Local interests are constantly
coming in and figuring in the election O
representatives. A candidate who ha.
great strength on account of some loca
question may not represent the choice
of the people for Senator. If the legis
lature, like the electoral college, had nc
other function than to register the vote
of the of the people then the qualifica
tions of members of the legislature woulG
he very simple indeed. Ofcourse undel
the plan proposed it is presumed tina
candidates for the State Legislature
would be chosen from men who repre-
sented the views OF their party in regart
to the Senatorship rs well as the policie
to be pursued in State affairs. But
there should ever be conflict between
these two interests one Of them woul'
have to be sacrificed.
The simple solution Of the question !
an alteration in the constitution Of tn
United States, making the Senators elect
cd by popular vote. This of itself is n
simple process but II the people desir
4 IL it can be effected in time. The Farm
ers' Alliance has declared in favor of
and we believe it is just demand. 81
years is the longest term for any electiv
effice and in six years q Senator ma
\ get pretty far away from the people, q
pecially if, as in the case of Brice an
Payne, the people didn't have them i
mind when they voted for the legisl,