Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1905-03-07
What the Nominations
Measure Means
Clearly Told
Registration of Voters viii
Provide Means For Use of
Law Next June

tlon OF candidates and giving to the
voters of each party the exclusive pow
er of selecting all candidates of that
party who shall stand for election to
office, leaving as the sole function of
the political convention the suggesting
of policy to be followed by the par
ty.
Although the amendment that incor-
porated this into the constitution of
the state fills As pages of printed mat
ter, it is simply and easily under
stood. The method of procedure is:
Any citizen of th, commonwealth
may declare in writing his intention
to be candidate for nomination of his
party for any municipal, county, ju-
dicial or state Office, by filing with the
city auditor, county clerk, or secretary
of state, according to which election
is to be held, a statement of his pur-
pose to be candidate, in doing which
he is permitted to announce in not
more than 100 words the platform of
principles which he will favor if elect
! ed.
This declaration must be sent by
registered mail to the clerical officer,
city, county or state. A copy is then
circulated by the candidate or his
friends attached to a petition which
must be signed by two percent of the
voters of his party. In this city it will
require 1876 signatures. The signers
must reside in at least five per cent of
the precincts of the governmental di-
vision in which the election is to be
held, which. in this city will be 10.
Any number of citizens may thus de-
clare their intention to become candi-
dates for nomination, and the one re-
ceiving a majority of the votes cast
at the primary election shall be the
only candidate of his party for the
office for which he is running. No
other candidate for that office may be
placed on the official ticket under the
name of that party.
Thirty days before the time for
holding the primary election, which
this year will be May 9th, the city au-
ditor, if it is to be a city election.
shall give notice that a primary elec-
tion is to be held for the election of
candidates for city offices. All polite
al parties that cast 25 per cent of the
total vote for congressional candi-
dates in the last general election shall
be entitled to take part in the prima-
ry nominations, which in this election
will be only Republican and Democrat
ic. This year the city auditors no
tice must be given on April g.
In order to vote in the primary nom
ination election, the voter shall have
registered his name, place of residence,
occupation and the political party to
which. he belongs, or, if he be an indie
pendent, he may declare his non parti-
sanship when he registers.
Nomination of candidates by a po- |
litical party in any other manner is
prohibited, and no candidate may use
the name of a political party unless
he shall have received a majority of |
the votes cast in the primary nomina-
tion election for the Office for which he
is running.
The primary nominations law applies
to cities of more than 5000 population,
as well as to county, judicial, con
gressional and state elections.
When city election is to be held,
it is made the duty of the county
clerk to open the registration books
80 days before April IS, which will
be this year March l6, for the regis
tration Of voters who were not en-
rolled in the preceding registration, or
who may wish to record a change Of
residence. This provision is contained
in the city charter No mention of the
re-registration Of voters previously
registered is made in the charter, but
the direct nominations law specifically
provides that voters shall be registered
as to party affiliations, so that the law
is construed TO require registration in
order TO comply with the provisions OF
the direct nominations law. The opin-
ion is prevalent that there is no con-
hiet between the charter and the di-
rect nominations law, and the rereg'
istration of voters viii provide the le-
gal means whereby the new law may
be made TO apply to the coming city
election. The county clerk has de-
elared his intention 10 proceed with
re-registration and il is believed that )