The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-01-25
A PRIMARY LAW.
One Makes Its Appearance in the
Senate.
Senator Simons Is Sponsor for
the Measure.
MUST BE REGISTERED.
nL MI MI - VI No&
lust BE REGISTERED.
Those Who Fail to Vote Not
Eligible at Election.
Will Have Effect of Making
Heavy Vote at Primary.

ed to the legislature today by Senator
| Simons of Sumner in the form of a bill
which he introduced in the senate.
! The salient feature of this proposed
| law is that the registration of voters
under the present law is abolished. All
| primaries and their vote at the pr1-
mary election will register them to
vote at the general election. No voter,
| therefore, will be entitled to vote at
| general election unless he has par
| ticipated in the primary or can prove
that he was i'll or absent from his
home at the time the primary was
held.
Senator Simons believes that this
plan will get the great majority of
| voters to participate in the primaries
and that the result of the primaries
| will therefore represent more nearly
| the voice of the whole people than it
would be possible to get under any
other plan.
Another provision of the bill is one
which applies the general election ma
chinery now in vogue for the conduct
! of the primaries.
| containing the new feature referred
to, reads as follows:
Any elector who shall have voted at
| a primary election next preceding any
general election for which the same is
| held shall be considered to have reg
| istered in that precinct, provided, how
ever, that any electcr having voted al
such primary election and who shall re-
move into another precinct at least 80
days preceding the general election,
and who shall be otherwise qualified
as an elector, shall be entitled to vote
therein, at said general election without
being further required to register, pro-
vided, however, that any elector falling
to vote at the primary election next
preceding the general election shall not
be eligible to vote at said general cleo
ton, except as hereinafter provided.
Each city clerk and each township
clerk shall provide the proper books
for the registration of voters at said
primary election held within their sew
eral precincts, said books to contain
blank columns for the name, age, resi-
dence and occupation of the voter, Tor
the use of the judges and clerks OF
election. The judges and clerks of the
primary election in each precinct shall
upon the day of the primary election,
have and keep at the polls throughout
the period which such polls are open
registration book for that precinct, and
when voter shall be given his ballot
his name age, place of residence and
occupation shall be entered at the pro-
per places in said registration book.
and the same shall constitute the lega'
registration of that voter.No other reg
istration than registration at the pil-
mary election, herein provided for,
shall be made at any time or place,
except: % When a voter who Votec
at the primary election in his precinct
shall, after the date of the primaries,
and at least 30 days prior to the elee-
ton for which nominations are made
at the said pI imaries. change his legal
residence to another precinct in which
he would be entitled to vote If properly
fed voter who lives in a precinct where
no primary election Is held shall, al
least so days prior to the election for
which nomination were made at the
said primaries, change his legal resi-
dence to a precinct in which a primary
election was so held; or, CD when a
voter is sick upon the day upon which
the primaries are held; or, (4) when
voter is unavoidably absent from the
precinct upon the day of the primaries
throughout all of the period that the
polls of said primaries are open; then
the voter may present himself at the
polls Of the general election in the pre-
cinct in which he lives and make oath
before the judges of election for that
precinct that mis- not being registered
in that precinct is due to one of the
reasons herein provided. stating the
reason, and when he shall have made
this oath he shall, IL otherwise quail
fed as a voter. be given the proper bal
lot and shall be entitled to vote at such
election the same as though he had
been properly registered by voting al
the primary election In that precinct.
Creech's Primary Election Bill
The third of the primary bills and
one of an entirely new sort was intro
duced in the house of representatives |
this morning by ]. w. Creech of
Dickinson county. This bill does not !
provide for the nomination of county, |
state and district officers by the pri- |
mary system but retains the conven-
ton system now in vogue but changes
the methods of electing the delegates |
to the county conventions, practically |
making these primary elections the |
same as the general elections.
The bill becomes effective for the |
election of 1908 and requires that on /
the first Tuesday in March of that year
and even numbered year thereafter, |
the county committees of each politi- /
cal party must meet and apportion |
the number of delegates allowed to |
each precinct for the county conven-
lions. Within ten days after the APP |
portionment is made. based on the |
vote cast at the preceding election for |
secretary of state those who wish to |
become candidates for delegate or az
ternate to a convention and the can |
didates for precinct committeeman |
must propose their nomination IN |
writing and file it with the county |
clerk.
The county clerk is required to pub |
lish the notices for the primaries at |
least fifteen days before the second |
Tuesday in April in each even num- |
bered year, when the delegates to the |
county conventions of all political par
ties shall be elected. at the same time |
and place and in the same manner as
provided for the elections of county |
and state officers. The bill requires that |
the nominations for delegates and pre-
cfnct committeeman for each party |
shSll be printed on separate ballots |
and each party ballot is to be of diff
ferent colored paper. The ballots are |
to be printed under the direction of
the county clerks. At the head of
each ballot are to be printed the in
structions to the voter, telling how
many delegates he can vote for and
how many alternates and instructing
"a of f1 L q RI