The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-01-28
PRIMARY LAW 4 SUCCESS
DESCRIPTION OF THE WORKINGS
OF MINNEAPOLIS ELEC-
TION ACT
SOME OF ITS STRONG POINTS
Oscar f. G. Day, the Author of the
Measure, Discusses Its Advan-
taSes as Already
Proved.

In view of the general interest now
taken in the primary election law under
which the last city election in Mime
apolis was conducted and the possibility
of its more general adoption, the follow
ing letter to the Chicago Record, written
by Mr.. Oscar F. G. Day, the author of
the law, should be well worth reading.
MINNEAPOLIS, Mimi, Jan. 24-One
of the most difficult matters in legislation
is to attempt any improvement on the
existing election laws. The citizen who
has the greatest interest of his country
at heart argues that an experiment Is
dangerous, and the professional polit.ciSl
resents any interference on the part of
the public in general with anything per-
tanning to his profession
Before 1 succeeded in getting my pri-
mary election law through the Minneso-
Ia legislature I was confronted with the
first proposition, which made the task
difficult one. But even with all that had
TO be commended with, of the opposition
of the pessimist and the deliberate hat
Ting of the professional politician, with
the assistance of a few Stalwart men
in the legislature the Minnesota primary
law was passed and has come to stay
1t is necessary, in order to combat any
arguments that may be used against the
Day primary plan, in state which may
desire to adopt the same measure, that
same idea may be had of the arguments
bill was printed the politicians, almost
to q man, laughed at 1t and said 1t was
simply an impossibility. When they saw
that there were dangers that it might be
introduced in the house. they drafted
fake bills to head it off, chief among
which were bills which provided that any
political party might at it's option use a.
direct primary plan. But, thanks to
good, systematic work the bill was pass
ed, applying to counties of 100000 Pepu-
latlOn only, which gave the bill to Hen
nepin county and incidentally Minneapolis
only.
PROPOSED EXTENSION OF THE
LAW.
Under the primary law as operated in
Minnesota, while nearly every officer
nominated comes under its provisions,
there are some that do not, and they
are still nominated by convention sys-
TENS. In Minnesota only such officers are
nominated by the direct primary as are
elected by votes cast wholly within one
county" The reason for this was that
1T was found impossible to bring the
legislators from st. Paul and Duluth in
line for the new primary system; hence
1t could not be adopted to cover the whole
state, and in order to make it a general
law, yet applicable to counties of 100000
population or over, the foregoing prcvis-
ion was arranged. Now the Legislature
Intends extending the law to cover other
counties, and under its provisions state
officers will not be nominated, and dis
uict court judges and members of con-
eress will only be nominated where one
county chances to be a judicial or con-
gressional district. If the law is desired
for ali officers in a state except presi-
Dental electors the foregoing provision
could not be enacted.
The bill was passed nearly two years
before it could be placed on trial and
~ hot he all
ton the professional politicians, ward
workers and precinct bosses put their
heads together for the purpose of arrang-
Ing some scheme which would make the
bill fail of its purpose. They felt that
if they could do this, the new idea would
be killed at its inception and direct
primaries would be shelved forever. 1
tell this to show what ample time the
schemers had in which to strive to make
the bill a failure, and in order that the
friends of such move may know how
well and truly the direct, concurrent
primary plan was tried.
TRIED TO DEFEAT IT'S INTENT.
Meetings were held, politicians in other
states were correspondent with, Tam
many was asked for advice and there was
not a month in which there was not
Bcheming to arrange some systematic
ring. combination or massing of votes,
whereby the intent of the bill might be
defeated. Just prior to the primary cleo
ton day it was freely asserted, often
published in letters to the pubic prints,
that under the plan the election would
be miXed-up mess Of nothing. that the
arrangements were inadequate, that the
voters would not understand it. that
ward and precinct workers would have
picnic" under its provisions, that
there would be chaos, fraud, riot and
that the whole election would simply be
void through failure.
One of the arguments used against
the new primary election law was that
it interfered with party organization
ard that if 1t was operated for any
length of time there would no longer
be any parties and the whole system of
politics would drift into a general catch
as-catch-can style Of nominating and
and electing, with no head and no way
of operating. This claim was strongly
fefuted by the facts, for the Republican
party proved to have the best organiza-
ton that had ever been known in its
history, so much so that it swept every
thing before it, and when the election
was over the party was in a better
shape, financially and in working force,
than it had ever been before in its his
tory The Democratic party might have
been in the same condition had not Ger
tain jealousies among its leading men
created an apathy which was RESPONSE
BILE for it's disorganization. Therefore,
the trial of the law absolutely refuted
this claim.
RESORTED TO THE COURTS.
Even the friends of the law had mis-