The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1902-06-20
The Primary Election Law.

Special to n O. Times-Democrat.
! jackson, June 15,-Since the
decision of the Supreme Court
settling the constitutionality of
the primary election law the
machinery for the next campaign
is beginning to be oiled up and
put into shape, and prospective
candidates begin to affect more
definite tones in limiting of their
intentions.
The first campaign nnder the
new law will be the primaries for
Congressman, and the contests in
several of the districts will be
warm enough and thorough enough
to make a test of the machinery
of the new law. Already the State
papers are filled with calls for
meetings of county executive COM
mittees, which, under the lew, are
required to meet and select repre-
septatives to make up the new
congressional district committees.
Thus far none of the new district
committees have organized, and
the first primary election must be
held during the latter part of
August.
One feature which will be of
especial interest to the political ms
of the State in connection with
the congressional primaries will
be the possible effect they will
have upon the State campaign
for Governor and other State
officers. The fact that the State
campaign is opening up stimuli
taneously with the congressional
race evidences the fact that the
candidates for State offices are not
blind to the advantages of certain
alliances possible to be made when
the Congressman get out into the |
field and begin to feel the lay of |
the land.
The operation of the new law
and its probable effect on the
political affairs of the State is be-
ing generally discussed. One
theory is that, in spite of increased
cost of campaigning, the field of
candidates will be largely increas-
ed. This may come about for
many reasons, and chiefly because
of the running mate system that
always obtains in primary cleo
tions. For example, strong man
in one section who wants to make
sure of getting into the second
primary, will indace a candidate
to come out in al ,ther section of
the State where ne has strong
opponent, the idea being to cut
down the vote of the opponent.
AS to the cost of making a race
for the State offices opinions are
widely divergent, and of course,
are based upon the different as
poets of the case. The largest
item of expense will be railroad
fare if a candidate undertakes TO
make thorough canvass of the
entire State; but newspaper men
and lawyers will probably be ex-
empt from this expense. Next to
railroad fare will come the cost of
advertising. This includes all
correspondence, personal cards,
etc., and candidate cards
in the various county newspapers.
A candidate for State office can
hardly hope to make the race with
out putting his card in most of the
county papers. Besides these
legitimate items of advertising
there must also be estimated the
assessments levied by various con-
lists that are circulated
in every campaign. The candi-
dates will have to do large part
toward building every new church
that is under way and helping every
charity movement that may be or
ganized. After these will come
his legitimate daily expenses for
board and incidentals of team hire
and the like in visiting barbecues. I
Bar rbecues will, indeed be an i'm
portant feature of the campaign,
and no candidate can afford to
miss them. A gentleman who
threatens to make the race for
Governor and who was here yes
terday making soundings with that
view, stated that he would not en-
ter the race without making prepa-
rations to spend at least one week
in every one of the seventy-five ,
counties. and that he further ex- I
pected to put his candidate card ,
Of announcement in every paper
published in the State. Speaking ,
Of the campaign expenses, he said
that no man would be able to get
oven an approximate idea of the
cost until he had been in the field
about a month. He was afraid,
he said, that the State candidates
would be assessed heavily to pay
the cost of printing tickets in the