Mower County transcript., 1906-09-26
PRIMARY LAW
DEFECTIVE ! K, II. J.
From Minneapolis Journal.

From Minneapolis journal.
The fact which stands out most clear
ly in the recent Minneapolis primary
election is the detect in the primary
law, which enables minority party to
make the nominations OF. the majority
by abandoning its own candidates IN
large numbers and voting the ticket of
the opposition party. That this was
done in this city Tuesday is very evil
dent from the almost total extinction
of the democratic vote in some of tho
strong democratic precincts.
1t does not yet appear what can be
done to remedy this defect, but that it
is serious one and one which is bound
to create popular dissatisfaction with
the primary law is apparent.
1t is just as improper for democrat
to vote the republican ticket, or for a
republican to vote democratic ticket
in the primary, as it would be for re-
publican to sit in democratic conven-
ton, or vice versa. The law attempts
to prevent such action by prescribing
the qualifications of voters in specify
ing that the voter must have voted the
republican ticket in the previous elec-
tion, or to intend honestly to vote it
at the coming election, in order to be
qualified to vote the republican ticket
at the primary. Voting at the regular
election, however, is secret, and there
is no way to determine how the voter
voted at the last regular election and
no way of course, to determine how he
intends to vote at the coming election,
so that challenges are impracticable
and rarely resorted to, while men with
out conscience vote freely as they
choose, and as they evidently did Tues
day, breaking every party line and
perhaps making the party nomination
farce.
This is one of the defects in opera
ton which should be corrected, and
the matter should be the subject of
consideration and action at the next
session of the legislature. If it is not
corrected, it is difficult to see how~the
law is going to stand and command
the confidence and support Of an intel
ligent public. We have had the same
experience twice in Minneapolis in six
years, and it is important that the pos
sibility Of recurrence be prevented.
That the primary election law is in
great need of amendment by the next
legislature seems to be the consensus
of opinion Of candidates for Office and
those generally at work in political cir
cles.
The objection to the law, as demon
strated by the recent election, seems to
be it's weakness in permitting members
of one political party to vote at will
for the candidates Of another. Two
other objections of somewhat less mag
nitude are that the law permits small
percentage of party to name party
candidate when there are number of
applicants for one nomination; and the
fact that the primary causes great .ex-
pense for a campaign on the part of
those seeking place.
"a law that will permit the grand
larceny of votes of one party by another
is not right" is the caustic~ way Mayor
D.P. Jones put it. "If the law cannot
be amended to adjust its present seri-
GUS defects, am in favor of having it
wiped off the statute books.
"The intent of the law, to let the
voice OF the people name the party
candidates for office, is all right. But
law that can't prevent minority
from becoming, in effect, a majority is
wrong. l believe my nomination
would have been made by 5000 to 5000
majority if only the republican voters
had been allowed to vote for the repub-
lican candidates. .'s %' - .
"It is notable thing when there are
practically no democratic votes regis
tered at the old city hall precincts, and
it looks as if something were rotten in
Denmark" ~
A. M. Geesaman, Mayor Jones' cam
paign manager, seconds Mayor Jones'
sentiments.
"The primary law, as it now is, makes
altogether too great an expense on a
candidate for public Office" said Mr..
Geesaman, "and it wrongfully permits
small percentage of the party to
name party candidates.
81 think the primary law has come
to stay" says J. c. Haynes the
successful candidate for nomination
of mayor on the democratic ticket, "but
the law ought to have some amend
ments. In my estimation, the voting
for candidates should either be made
wide open, az it is under the Australian
system, or else it should be strictly con-
~ rty1