The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-02-24

/ authorizes the board OF county commits
! sioners to fill vacancies in county offices,
provides that the appointee shall hold
! his office until the next general election.
And section 4, of the same article, pro-
vides that A vacancy In the board of
county commissioners shall be filled by
appointment by the district judge of the
district in which the vacancy occurs,
no limit being fixed as to what term the
appolntees shall hold. so | think we may
fairly and reasonably conclude that the
intention of the trainers of the conSti-
tuition was that the appointee should
hold for the remainder of the unexpired
term. Section 81, of article s, of the con-
stitution, provides for the filling of va
cancies occurring in all Offices, state.
county and township, except that Of
county commissioners. and provides fur
Their that A person appointed to fill any
such vacancy shall hold his Office until
the next general election. and until his
successor is elected and qualified. A
person elected to fill a vacancy shall
hold office until the expiration of the
term for which the person he succeeds
was elected.
Nowhere in the constitution or ordi-
nances thereto is any provision made
limiting the term of a person appointed
to fill a vacancy in the office of county
commissioners. nor any provision for
electing a person TO fill the unexpired
FiIi Vi dHy 1ounty GOIlI1lSStuHEIs Af1GH
person has been appointed TO fill any
such vacancy. That the construction
now given by this court to the constitu-
ton relative to the office of county COM
missioner finds support from the fact
that the code commissioners in compil-
ing the code of 1895. III order to carry
out the provisions of the constitution
touching this question, adopted the con-
stfuc1ion of article It, section 4, and the
other section quoted, supra, and now
adopted by this court, by adopting or In
sorting in the political code, section
1912, which reads as follows: When
ever vacancy occurs in the board of
county commissioners. from a failure to
elect or otherwise, the district Judge or
judges in whose district the vacancy oc-
ours must fill the vacancy by appointing
for the unexpired term some qualified
elector of the county in which the va
cancy occurs
The legislative assembly of 1895 seems
to have adopted the same construction
of the constitution relative to the Office
of county commissioners, from the fact
that the report of the code commissioners
which contained section 4212 of the po-
litical code was adopted and became
law.
Therefore the court holds that the
term for which county commissioners
We're elected was four years. neither
more nor less. That the first term COM
menced on the Sth day of November,
1889, the day on which the state was adj
mitted into the union, and ended on the
9Th day of November, 1888. and that the
second term commenced on the 9Th day
of November, 1893, and ended on the
Sth day Of November. 1897. That these
terms We're general and uniform
all the counties of the state.
That this term of office applied as well
to new counties as to the old ones. That
term had commenced To run, the persons
appointed to fill the offices of county
would hold their offices
for the remainder of the unexpired cur
rent term. Ravalli county WAS created
and came into existence ON the 1st day
of April, 1898. If the county had been
created without the act creating it, nam
ing the persons to fill the office of county
there certainly would
have been vacancy which the district
judge OF the district in which the county
was situated could have filled Ivy APP
and such appointees would
have held for the remainder of the then
current term, to-wit.. to Nov. s, 1893
And as new current term would have
commenced on Nov. s, 1898, and as no
election could have been held until No
1896 ii would have been the
duty of the district judge 10 have filed
the vacancies for such term. If the leg
iSidluif lltd the power To appoint ia
question that this court does not UNI
dertake to decide), certainly It's appoin-
tees would stand on the same footing as
the appointees of the district judge. and
would hold for the same term.
1.-THE county Of Ravalli having been
created on April /, 1893. came into exist
ence during the current term which
Nov. s. 1889. and expired
Nov. s. 1898, and the persons named by
the legislature in the oct creating said
county. became county commissioners
tif the legislature had the power to APP
poinD, and should have held their office
until the Nov. 8, 1895 when their term
II office would have expired by limita
ion, because article l6, section 4, supra.
provides that county commissioners shall
lold their Office for four years. and not
lntl their successors are elected and
qualified. II the legislature had no
oower to appoint them. then they be- +
anne and We're officers de facto.
AS the law stood In 1892 and now
stands, the election of county commits T
'ioners takes place one year prior to the T
ime that their term of office commences +
md fer the term commencing Nov. S. f
A93, and ending Nov, s. 1897 the elee-
ion of commissioners occurred in No +
'ember, 1892, and before the creation Of +
aavalh county. Defendants claim that
he persons named as commissioners IN |
he act creating Rayalli county held I
lnder the legislative appointment until T
he general election in 1894 and that de-
endants We're then elected for a term
4 four years. or until Nov 3. isaS. | do
lot think this position is tenable. and il
annot be upheld by the courts unless
hey 60 into the business of legislation
\ general election having been held in
III of the counties of the state in 1892
on the election of county commissioners
or term of four years. no election
ould be held in any county of the state
or the election of county commissioners
Until November. 1896. when the general
lection for that purpose was held and
he REALTORS Were elected.
Il am clearly of the opinion that no
agal election could have been held in
Sa4, in Ravalli county, for the election
t county commissioners. | am also of
he opinion that The persons who acted
> county commissioners in said county
rom Nov. \. 1895. to Nov. s. 1894. did 50
Without being elected or appointed. and
therefore, We're only county commits