The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1901-02-08
WILL WE BE ANY BETTER OFF?


is, whether the people of Wisconsin de-
sire new election law, or whether the
law now in force satisfies the demands of
the people?
A bill has been introduced in the leg
islature repeating the present law, and
for an enactment of new law abolish
ing caucuses and conventions. The peo-
pie are to nominate all candidates by
direct vote. Under the new law each
precinct elects a committee Of three by
direct vote, the one receiving the largest
vote becomes chairman and member of
the county committee. Each chairman
of the county committee becomes a
member of the state central committee,
having vote for each hundred voters
of his party in his county.
The bill provides that in cities the
primaries shall be held at least three
weeks before election. This is one Of
the principal objections to the law, as
the time is too long. At all general cleo
tions primary election day is on the first
Tuesday in September, and the city can
vas of the vote is made on the following
Thursday, and the state canvas is held
at Madison on the second Tuesday in
in September, by the chairmen of the
various county committees, making
large and cumbersome board of seventy
members. This is another great objec-
ton to the law.
This law practically prevents farmers
and the rural districts from having any
voice in the nominating of candidates on
the assembly, county, congressional or
state tickets; that fact is apparent when
you stop to consider how difficult it is to
get a large attendance at the caucuses
in the rural districts. This bill compli-
Gates this fact to greater extent than
the old law, for the reason that under
this law, primary election day comes at
the farmers busiest season. No farmer
having two or three hundred dollars
worth of tobacco lying fiat on the ground
when the weather is threatening, will
hitch up his team, take his help, drive a
distance of from three to seven miles to
attend the primary election. Sentiment
and patriotism are all right in their
place, but in making primary election
law the legislature must deal with facts
and conditions. In Rock county it
would be impossible for the country to
nominate a candidate on the county
ticket, unless the county outside of the
cities of GAINESVILLE and Beloit would
agree to concentrate their entire vote
upon one candidate, and even then it
would be necessary for them to cast their
full party vote at the primary election.
This, of course, would not be done once
in a thousand years. The farmers of
Rock county know too we'll the manner
in which the cities of GAINESVILLE and Be-
lott support their regular candidates.
Another bad feature of this bill is that
it destroys the effect of the independent
vote, which vote should be legislated in
favor Of, as it represents the intelligence
and honor Of the American people. No
voter can attend the primary and vote
for party candidates or sign the call of
candidate for office unless he voted the
party ticket at the last general election.
This bill also destroys party organization
md RI ho 1ar
prevents a man from changing his party.
This bill also destroys the old principle
"ot an office seeking the man." and
makes it a case Of every man seeking
the Office This bill does not prevent
and cannot prevent politicians from US
ing the same tactics at the primary cleo
tons that are now used at the regular
elections. Under this law it is easier for
some undesirable and incapable person
to secure a nomination than it was under
the old caucus system, and it is also
great deal easier for a man who is the
choice of the minority of his party to Sc
cure the nomination over several candi-
UdLSS, any one Oh whom m1SQC O0 the
choice of the majority. This system
will be very expensive, the cost of an
election running into the hundreds of
thousands of dollars. There is no sam
pie ballot provided for by this law; this
is great mistake as the tickets will be
three or four times as large as the one
now in use.
To cap the climax, candidates make
their own platforms and after they have
been nominated for Office, which unques-
tionably will be of quick meal" variety
and will not commit the candidates to
anything that will interfere with their
personal views or future political ad-
vancement, but will permit them to
"straddle" any Objectionable or reform
movement that may develop in the cam
paign. Where. under such law, is the
average citizen to be benefited, and
what are the advantages of this law
over the old? The law, as relating to
Il