The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1907-01-28

NOBODY KNOWS HOW VOTE IS CAST

OLYMPIA, Jan. %. Important
amendments to the direct primary bill
prepared ~ the State Direct Primary
League have been agreed upon by the
house committee on privileges and
elections, to which the bill was refer
red. They are amendments for plu-
rality instead of first and second choice
voting, to require the voter when he
steps into the voting booth to ask
for the ticket of the party with which
he wishes to affiliaae and to provide a
plan for the holding of conventions to
adopt principles with which to go be-
fore the peple.
1t is apparent that the house COM
mittee on privileges and elections be-
lieves the state league bill would tend
too much to break up party Organiza-
ton. 1t is probable that the chief Of
ficers of the State Direct Primary
league will appear before the joint
house and senate committees on priv
ileges and elections some night this
week
c. w. Horn of Seattle president,
asked for joint meeting of the COM
mittees. Mr.. Horn has written letters
to members of the house sounding a
warning against changing the bill, and
it is probable that the chages agreed
great deal of discussion in all parts
of the state. Several members of the
legislature pledged themselves before
the election to support the bill drawn
by the direct primary league. Soon
after the Legislature assembled criti-
cisms We're heard of the league bill
on the ground that it provides for
first and second choice voting.
Second Choice.
BY this is meant that if no candi-
date has a majority of all the votes
cast, then the second choice votes for
the candidates shall be added to the
first choice and the one having the
largest number shall be the nominee.
The voter would be required to indi-
cate his first choice and also his sec
ond choice when there We're more than
two candidates for the same nomi
nation. Instead of this the committee
mas practically decided to incorpor
ate the provision for plurality nominal
tons in Representative Rancks pri-
mary bill.
The next important objection to the
league by the committe is the provision
that a voter, when he enters the vOt-
ing place, shall receive ticket of
each of the political parties and shall
take them all and retire to the booth,
where he shall mark one of them. But
he is required under the league bill
to fold each of them in the same man.
ner and when he hands them TO the
election officer he designates the one he
has voted. The others go into the
blank ballot box provided. 1t is seen
that under the state league bill no
voter was affiliating.
AS an argument against this provi-
sion it is stated that one party could
arrange to vote for a weak candidate
of the opposition in order to be able to
beat him later at the general election
Then the party workers talk as If they
are not ready to cOncede SO much
against party organization.
Provide for Convention.
The third amendment to the bill on
the part of the house committee will
probably be a section providing for a
convention of some kind at which a
party platfrm could be adopted. UP
to this time the chief suggestion along
this line is that the candidates meet
after the primary is held and agree
upon a declaration of principles. But
some other plan may be devised.
To draft the three amendments
Chairman Strobridge of the house
committee on privileges and elections
appointed Representatives Greddlng
Kirkpatrick and Freudenberg.