The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1905-04-06
biennial is HELD GOOD
Supreme Court Upholds the Bi-fnniaI
Election Law--Consequent!y no
Election This Year.

the state constitution WAS sustained by
the Iowa supreme courtin unanimous
opinion Tuesday morning. This finally
settles the long controversy over the
constitutionality of the amendment,
which has been twice adopted by a de-
cisive vote Of the people. The first
adoption was in November, 1900, but
that amendment was later declared un-
constitutional by, the supreme court and
never became effective. Then a new
amendment was passed by two legisla-
tures and voted upon at the general
eiection last fall. This amendment is
now approved by the supreme court in
an opinion written by Justice Scott M.
Ladd, with the concurrence of all the
other members of the court.
1 The amendment in brief provides that
hereafter all the general elections of
the state shall be held in even numbered
years and that the terms Of all officers
which expire in odd numbered years
shall be extended one yearto come
within the even numbered biennial per-
1iod. This does away with general
election this fall, and sets the election
Of all state and county officers for
November, 1905, and biennial thereafter.
In accordance with the extension of
ftheir terms all the members OF the last
Legislature will constitute the general
assembly which convenes next January.
Another session of the legislature will
be held the following year also, begin
ming in January, 1907, its members being
elected in November, 1905.
| The state officers whose terms are
extended be the amendment are Gov
ernor A. B. Cummins, Lieutenant Gov
ernor John Herriott, State Superinten-
dent of Public Instruction Edward A.
Dawson and Chief Justice John G. Sher-
win. All members of the legislature
and district judges whose terms would
have expired this year also get an ad-
ditional year to December 81, 1905.
County treasurers, sherifs, coroners,
superintendent and surveyors through
out the state also have year ad ded to
| their present terms. In Decatur county
the decision of the supreme court is
gladly received by the democratic
county officials as it extends all of their
terms another year and every officer
in this county whose tern of office is
extended is democrat. Those who
will profit by the decision are County
Treasurer w. Fl. Young, Sheriff T. &.
| Wallace, County Superintendent Eli
Hutchinson and Coroner DR.. F. A. Bow
man. The next general assembly is
required by the amendment to make
provision for the election of all other
elective officers whose terms expire in
odd numbered years. It is. expected
that all of these will likewise be granted
a years extension. In fact, the Official
State Register for 1905 gives the terms
OF all officers as extended by the bien-
NAL elections amendment.
The opinion written by Justice Ladd
covered twelve typewritten pages and
was the only expression of the court on
the amendment, all the other justices
concurring in .upholding it's constitu-
tionality. After discussing the general
question as to whether the amendment
contained one or many propositions
which should have been submitted sep
arately, the opinion takes up only two
OF the special points urged against the
amendment. The first was as to whether
the provision that the legislature
should make such changes in the cleo
tions Of ''al other elective" officers to
conform to the amendment, included
municipal and school district officials as
we'll as state, district, county and town
ship.
| SuSolCO 14ttOO says III ILLS TSSdfu.
''The language employed cannot be fair
ly so interpreted. In the first place the
amendment purports to relate the gen.
eral elections only, not to those fixed by
statute to occur in the spring of the
year, and the clause should be inter
|preted with reference to tho object
sought to be effectual."
! The other point strongly urged
loo OF hn 4b~
before the supreme court was that it
provided for'a change in the method OF
4 selecting chief justices from the one
4 with the shortest term to choice by
the legislature, as under the biennial
a elections periods, two of the Judges re-
tire from office at the same time. In de-
claring that this provision was con-
stitutional part of the amendment and
] not necessarily separate proposition
requiring separate submission, Justice
Ladd says: "The suggestion that the
people in adopting the constitution or.
n iginally intended to favor the judge
u who had served the longest term for
! chief justice is without merit"
II The biennial election amendment test
) case was brought by w. L. Lobaugh, 8
trustee Of Richland township in Story
d county, against the board of trustees il
:, that township. Under the old law Lo
, baugh's term as trustee would have ex.
pired this fall and the board of turstees
decided to force test of the biennial
election amendment which extended
d Lobaugh's term another year, by post
4 ing a notice of election this fall regard.
4 less of the adoption of the biennial
i amendment. Lobaugh at once brought
suit under the biennial amendment.
i 1t was first tried before Judge W. e
i Evans at Nevada. Senator Titus, oi
Muscatine, author of the biennial
amendment, and Judge George II. Carr
| Of Des Moines, participated in the argu.
ment favoring the amendment and j. L
u Parrish, of Des Moines, assisted by E
M. Mccall, of Nevada, in the attack on
the amendment. Judge Evans decided
in favor of the constitutionality of the
amendment and appeal was taken to the
n supreme court, where advanced hearing
was granted owing to the great import,
II .1.~4l Z L I. e IL. u