The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-02
THE ELECTION BILL.
Provisions Adopted By the Sem
ate and House.
NOW WITH THE GOVERNOR
HOUSE TO HOUSE CANVASS IS
ENTIRELY ABOLISHED.
Provision For the Transfer of Votes
Form of the Ballot Changed
The Next City Election Will Be
Held in November.

The election bill. which has been passed
by both houses of the legislature and
\ now goes to the governor, is of direct
personal interest to upwards of $4,000
voters in this state. 1t was intended by
the code commission that the flatter con-
tanned in this bill should be incorporated
in the code, but as the time for holding
municipal elections has been changed to
| November, and the code will not become
effective until next December, 1t became
necessary to pass the elections title as a
seoarate measure, which will go into eff
feet, as other laws, 60 days after its ap-
proval.
The old elections law was taken as the
basis for the new BILL but there are a
number of important changes, made
necessary in part by the supreme court
decision against the numbering of bal
/ lots There Is a radical departure In the
method OF registration and in the form of
J the ballot, and in other respects import
ant amendments have been made.
The polls will open at O'Clock, as be-
| fore. and will remain open until Z p. m.
These hours were retained in the interest
/ OF the large number of laboring people
AID employees in the cities, who cannot
! leave their work until o'clock.
There is a change in the manner of APP
pointing registry agents. The aDpointee
must in all cases be u member of that
political party which cast the highest
number of votes for representative TO
congress at the next preceding election.
Under the old law the vote for governor
was the basis.
The house TO house canvass by the
registry agent is entirely abolished all
the registration work being done at the
office of the agent; An entirely new
registration is made each presidential
year. and for the general election inter-
vening between presidential elections the
lists shall simply be revised. Three days
are designated for this revision, the tnird
Tuesday, the third Wednesday and the
fist Tuesday prior to election day ana
for the new registration in presidential
years the first Wednesday prior TO eiec-
ton, in addition to the three days before
designated. The registration ONCE shall
be open from o'clock a. m. until
o'clock p. m. and the agent must post a
notice in five conspicuous places in his
district for ten days before the first day
of registration, giving the time and place
for such registration. The agent can
register no voter who does not apply II
person at his office, and in presidential.
wars the list will contain the names OF
only those who do so apply. Thus the
opportunities for registration will be
somewhat curtailed, as compared with
the old regulations.
Provision is made for the transfer of
voters from one election district to an
other at any time prior to the day OF
election.
,rhe registry agents shall make a re-
Vision of the lists for municipal elections,
AID for this purpose shall keep their
Offices open on the first and third Tues
days prior to such election. This revision
IS at the expense of the city or town
holding the election. There shall be no
revision for school elections. and in the
elections law nc duties whatever are i'm
posed upon the registry agents in con-
nection with the elections for members of
boards of education in cities of the first
and second class. They are not even re-
CURED to furnish boards of education
Nth copies of the registration list. but
this may be provided for by the educa-
ton bill. There is no reference to school !
elections in the elections bill.
TIE form of the ballot has been I
ing it. the changes tending to simplify
the work of the voter. The names of the
parties are no longer placed across the
tap of the ballot, but. with the party
emblem. are printed at the top of up (
right columns. Below the party name.
and in the same column. are placed the
THUS each party ticket will be printed
n a column by itself. instead of all
candidates for each office being grouped /
together, as under the old law.
A straight ticket can be voted by mark
ing a cross at the top of the column, or
by marking the squares opposite each
name, by both such markings. If
the voter does not desire to vote for any
particular candidate on the ticket he
may draw line through that candidates
name, and the cross at the top will count
for all the other candidates on the ticket.
To vote for candidates on two or more
tickets he may place cross in the
opposite the names of such can
didates or he may vote one ticket
straight by marking at the top. draw a
line through the names of such candi-
dates on that ticket for whom he does
not desire TO vote, and marking in, the
squares opposite the names of the can
didates of his choice upon other tickets.
The unnecessary marking of candidate
on a ticket that has been voted straight
does not affect the validity of the vote
but when more than one ticket has been
voted straight the ballot is rejected.
The provision relating to the number
ing of the ballots has been stricken out.
such numbering was unconstitutional.
1t is made unlawful for any voter or
election officer TO place upon ballot any
mark by which it can be identified as
having been voted by any particular
person, except when a voter is unable to
prepare his ballot without assistance.
!orsed that they can be identified If
Illegal votes are cast sufficient in number
TO change the result of the election there
IS no method by which such votes MAJ
be identified and thrown out, unless the
persons by whom they were cast testify
IS to how they voted
defective or incomplete cross mark
IN any ballot in ink, in proper place.
shall be counted. if there be no other
mark or cross indicating an intention to
vote for some persons or persons other
han those indicated by the defective
The judges of election shall receive {
for their services at a rate ;
o be fixed by the county commissioners
lot exceeding 50 per day. 3
MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS. ,
The time for holding municipal cleo
ions is changed from February to No
7ember. 1t is provided that on the {
next following the first Monday
n November 1897, and bi-ennially there
Ifter there shall be held in each in
city and town in the state, an
lection TO fill all elective offices in said / Z
titles and towns; and the officers then I
lected shall qualify and enter upon their
utieS at Il o'clock, noon, on the first {
donday in January next succeeding their !
lection. The term of office of all present :
lective officers shall expire at II o'clock
oon, on the first Monday in January, !.
S9S. Under these provisions the city I
lections and the general elections are I
eld in alternate years. The Salt Lake /
,ity election will be held next November. c
nd the present officers will go out of =
flee in January. instead of March :
For municipal elections the city council Z
T town trustees shall appoint judges of
lection and provide the polling places.
ut they are not required to provide a I
olling place in each election district C
ne in each municipal ward being suffi- e
icipal elections shall be conducted ac- a
ording to the general laws of the state
The foregoing are the important changes 1
nat have been made in the election laws
II other provisions being substantially as
l the old law.