Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1905-03-18
THE NEW CAUCUS LAW.
A Rigid Law for Safeguarding Primar1C
and Conventions and Nominating.

mention of the new law:
If the right of the individual voter are
not absolutely safe guarded by the IRON
clad caucus law passed by the last legis-
lature, the Argus-L must frankly
say that it can not see how it could have
been done. The editor has read the
measure with great care, and from the
view point of critic and he finds HIM
self unable to point out where additional
safeguards could have been thrown in.
We shall take occasion later to give such
publicity to all of the provisions of the
law as will give to all complete informa.
tion as to the detailed provisions of the
law, but Tor the purpose OF the present
article is to point out its main features,
and to commend the measure as one
passed in the interest of the individual
voter with purpose to give him free
and untrammeled expression Of his pre-
| ference. 1t differs from an iron-clad
primary law only in the matter Of di-
rect nominations and in that respect-as
the Argus.Leader has many times point
ed out-this difference is in the judg-
ment Of this newspaper an improve.
ment.
All state conventions for nominating
state tickets are to be held on the first
Tuesday after the first Monday in June
judicial conventions are held on the
same day county conventions to choose
delegates for such are to be held on the
first Tuesday after the frst Monday in
May and county conventions for the
nomination of county ticket are fixed
for the first Tuesday after the first Mon
day in September. The state conven-
tions must be called at least 60 days be-
fore the time set, and at least 20 DAYS
notice shall be given before county con-
yentions are held. Primaries for choos.
ing delegates to the county convention
which selects delegates to the state and
! Judicial conventions are to be held on
the first Tuesday after the second Mon
day in May, and for choosing delegates
| to the county convention to name a
county ticket on the first Tuesday after
the second Monday in September. So
much for the dates.
How are the rights Of the individual
voter safeguarded2 We shall see. In
times past it has been charged that tie
whole caucus was over in few minutes.
Under this law the polls are kept open
from 3 until $50 p. m.-long enough for
any voter to get to the polls if he wants
TO go, Ward leaders have been accused
of browbeatiug the timid voter. Under
| this law the ballot is secret. Under the
old system, it was claimed that a few
seifseekers got together and outlined the
list of names. Under this law any voter
can vote for any man, and any one not
| satisfied with the list ofnanes prepared,
can secure blank paper from the county
The ballot boxes are prepared. One is
a waste ballot box which is provided in
the interest of secrecy. There is aGso.
lutely no way in which another can
| learn how the voter cast his ballot. II
is the Australian system of voting, and
is surrounded by every safeguard.
| When a party has once adopted q ballot
color, it has a copyright on that color
and no other party can use it, This is
in the interest of the uneducated. A
man can vote at the primaries if he is
not color blind and he can vote for whom
he peases, and no one can tell how he
voted
Then comes the question of the count.
This is made by precinct committee
selected by the voters of the precinct
The one who receives the highest mum
ber OF votes is chairman, and the one
who receives the next highest is secre-
tary. Thus in case Of factional fights
both sides are represented on the can.
vsssing board. In the case of vacan-
cies, the voters have the power to fill
these at the time of the beginning ofthe
primaries. When the votes are counted,
they are preserved. Let this fact be
| noted. They are turned over to the
chairman Of the county committee. In
case Of contest, the ballots actually cast
are to be turned over to the credentials
committee and counted by that commit
tee, thus barring the way to arbitrary
exclusion from conventions by high
handed procedure, such as has some
times been the case everywhere.
The question ofimproper voting seems
TO be properly cared for. Anybody can
challenge an elector, and the elector so
challenged must subscribe to an oath
that he is qualified voter and that in
the last election he supported majority
of the candidates ofthe party with which
he seeks to vote. A fine of not exceed
ing six months are the penalties pre-
scribsd for illegal voting Fine and ina
prisonment imposed upon those who
vote at more than one caucus and who
being a probable member of one party
votes at the caucus OF another.
The law also provides way by which
direct nominations may be secured by
the members of any party in any conn
ty. At any county convention, held to
nominate county officers, a majority Of
the delegates may instill the direct nom
ination system in that county. In such
case, al county officers and members of
the legislature may be nominated by
direct vote as is now done in Minnesota.
This provision puts it in the power of the
majority Of any party 10 put the direct
nomination system in vogue in their
county if they desire, which provision
ought to prove very popular with those
who favor direct nominations, though
manv Of the leaders of this movement