Los Angeles herald., 1906-07-04
M|XUP OVER THE
APPEALS JUDGES
ELECTION LAWS NOT AMENDED
TO COVER CASE
Clearly an Oversight, Say Lawyers
but Candidates May Now Have
to Go on Ticket by
Petition

OIle Oh lne interesting questions that
has arisen in connection with the COM
ing political campaign is as to the
manner of nominating the judges of
the district court of appeals.
These judges were provided for at
comparatively recent date, those
now holding office having been ap-
pointed to their positions, and the
state election laws have never been
amended to cover the methods to be
followed for stheir nomination and
election.
Lawyers who have looked into this
subject say that the only provision of
the law which possibly could be
stretched to cover this point is found
in section 1851, and there is some ques-
tion as to whether that really could
be made to apply.
The provision referred to is as fol-
lows:
Where state convention is to be
held the respective petitions as filed
shall provide that the same delegates
composing the state convention who
reside within the respective railroad
commissioners districts and state
equalization districts shall be the del
egateS to the respective conventions
to nominate candidates for railroad
commissioners and for members of the
state board of equalization.
Petitions Shall State
"And the petitions filed by the con-
gressional district committees, where
there are such committees shall state
whether the delegates elected to a
state convention within such congress
sional district shall be delegates en-
powered to nominate a candidate for
congress in such district, or whether
separate delegates shall be selected in
such congressional district for that pur-
pose.
And petitions filed by senatorial or
assembly district conventions. from
districts including more than one
county, where there are such district
committees, shall state whether the
same delegates to the state convention
residing within such district shall nom
mate the candidate for senator or as
semblyman In such district, or whether
separate delegates shall be selected in
such district for that purpose.
"And unless there shall be such dis
trict petitions providing for such sep
arate delegates in the cases aforesaid
such district candidates for congress,
state senator or assemblyman shall be
nominated by the delegates to the
state convention who come from and
reside within such respective districts"
How Construed
The point is made by some persons
who have looked into this subject that
while the new judges of the district
court of appeals are not specifically
mentioned in this law, the section
quoted may be construed as intending
to cover that case as we'll as the
others.
1t is argued that great care has been
taken to provide for all the political
divisions of the state as they existed
at the time of the passage of the law,
and that the manner of nominating the
district judges of appeals should be
the same as that followed in the cases
specifically covered.
Others are inclined to the opinion
that this Interpretation is somewhat
liberal, and some doubt is expressed
as to whether it could be made to
stick.
The failure to amend the election
law to conform with the action of the
Legislature in creating the district
courts of appeals was clearly an over
sght, but the fact remains that it was
not so. amended, and the question now
is how are these judges to be nomina-
ted?
May Go by Petition
1t is possible. say some lawyers, that
they may have to go on the ticket by
petition, and in that event there would
be some interesting possibilities. Eff
forts to straighten out the tange are
now being made by some of the polit
ical leaders. and the opinion is ex-
pressed that a way will yet be found
out of the difficulty.
There are three courts of appeal dis
tricts in the state. One takes in the
northern section one the middle coun-
ties and the third the southern part
of the state. The district in the south
takes in twelve counties. being bound
ed on the north by Kern. The judges
in this district are Wheaton A. Gray,
George II. Smith and M. T. Allen.
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