The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-05-02
1t ArOuses Considerable Interest
Among Members of Commercial
Club Committee.
MINNEs0TA's PRIMARY LAW
1T Is FULLY EXPLAINED BY ATTOR-
NEY G. r.. CAMERON.
Another Meeting Will BE Held to
Receive Suggestions from Prac-
tical Politicians.

A novelty in primary election reform oc-
cupied the attention of the Commercial
Club primary law committee at its meeting
last night. DR.. George Z. Hunt, secretary
of the committee, presented a suggestion
in regard to the method of selecting candi-
dates on party tickets which aroused more
interest perhaps, than any similar sugges-
ton that has yet been made. DR.. Hunts
idea was that to obtain the best results
from primary reform the candidate to be
chosen for any Office should have a clear
majority of the votes of his party. In stat
ing how that might be obtained Dr. Hunt
said:
Although am not the originator of the
plan which L wish to present to you, since
it has been tried at various times in other
places, L am so struck with it's feasibility
and value that / have a sense of pride in
discovering it to this committee. The plan
is this: That in preparing primary tickets
voters should be given an opportunity of
expressing their second choices as well as
their first. That is to say, if voter had
pledged himself to vote for A, he should
have a chance to record a second ballot for
c or d as a second choice; one to whom,
perhaps his real convictions would point
There should be two rows of squares placed
in front of candidates names on the ticket
In the first square the voter would make
cross expressing his first choice In any
one of the squares in the second column he
would have the opportunity of making a
second choice The value of the plan would
be that if A or r had not a majority when
the ballots marked in the first row of
he eli
board could take up the second choice
squares after the names of the candidates
who had the lowest vote and adding them
TO the vote of A and b, the candidates in
the lead. could ascertain thereby which of
the two leading candidates had clear ma
jority The law of chance demonstrates
that expressions of second choice from
voters whose first choice would be G or d
would be for the most part either A or 3.
1t also goes to show that the counting
board would not have to consider second
choice expressions of any but those who
voted for any one of the lowest on the
ticket That is to say. that the board
would have only TO take the second choices
of those who voted for d alone to find out
whether A or had majority
DIR. Hunts suggestion aroused much in
terest and the discussion that followed was
lively. While believing that the plan might
work well. r. o. Hawkins suggested that
those who wanted TO support one candidate
first last and all the time might be handi-
one vote while others, who had two
choices, would in effect be casting two bal
lots. Dr. Hunt replied that the objection
might be remedied In some way. The sug
gestion will be one of the details before the
primary law committee to receive the most
careful investigation
MINNESOTA PRIMARY LAW.
Mr. c. r. Cameron. now an attorney of
this city, but who formerly lived in Mime
apolis was the principal speaker before the
committee Mr.. Cameron presented val
liable paper on the primary election law of
Minnesota, which is stated TO be the most
satisfactory of any yet evolved. Mr.. Cam
eron commended the law and its workings
for the most part, but had several severe
criticisms to make of it. In part he said:
Minnesota has a rigid registration law,
and it's conditions must be and COM
piled with before an elector can vote either
al the primary or general election There