Washington State journal and Adams County news. [volume] (Ritzville, Wash.) 1906-1907, 1907-08-14
CALIFORNIA; new PRIMARY ELECT.
ION LAW. A SAFEGUARD
AGAINST FLOATERS.

Inc new n'recC primary law III
California, just upheld by the supreme
court of the state, contains excellent
provisions, evidently, against repeat
ing and other forms of fraud. The
particular feature passed on by the
supreme court is that requiring voters
to declare their party affiliation when
they register for the primaries. This
had brought out stout arguments pro
and con and the dispatches say that
6, 600 voters had refused to state their
politics when they registered, but
swore in their registration to protect
their rights. The argument of those
protesting against the law was that a
man should have the righ. to affiliate
with what party he pleased without
making his affiliation known to others.
But why should voter take hand
in the management of party affairs
unless he believes in a party, an if he
believes in party, why should he
desire to hide his beliefs? A different
question is presented when it comes to
electing public officers. Then the
different parties have selected their
candidates and it is for the voter to
decide conscientiously which candidates
should receive his approval. 1t has.been
maintained that the same argument
for secrecy of the ballot at general
election applies to primary. But
the parallel is by no means complete.
Voting at the primary is secret as a
matter of fact. The voter receives a
ballot containing the names of mem
bers of his party asking for nomina-
tions, and he does not have to reveal
which of the candidate. for nomiDations
he favored
Failure to require declaration of
party Affiliations would end to the
destruction of parties, and that is not
desirable in this or another govern
ment where principles are debated and
where the party system is the foun-
dation of politics. The bosses would
instruct their followers to cast their
primary ballots for the candidate of
the opposition party who would be
most easily defeated at the general
election. This tendency would operate
both ways and result in the nomination
of weak candidates not really the
choice of a majority of the party of
which they were members. This very
thing has happened already in some
states. Especially is it likely to
happen when the members of one party
are so nearly of one mind that the
nominations are practically conceded
long before primary is held or when
an incumbent administration is seeking
reelection. Under such conditions
the members of this party, when party
affiliatton is secret, seek to disconcert
the opposition by casting ballots for
the weakest candidates. This is even
done sometimes, where party affiliat-
ion is open, by voters that have little
self-respect, but it would be great
mistake to encourage it by secret
affiliation at a primary. A great deal
of the opposition to the California
law just declared constitutional came
from the members of the labor party
of San Francisco who through secret
affiliation at the primary to dominate
the other parties whenever they chose.
Another important consideration is
the protection which registration by
parry furnishes against repeating and
other forms Of fraud. When the regis
tration is completed, the party workers
know just how many persons have the
right to vote at the primary and how
many are affiliated with each party.
They have time to verify the regis
tration books to ascertain whether each
person registered has the right to vote
and whether the registration books are
padded. 1t is a safeguard against
voters. The California law will prove
to be q superior measure in this
respect.-Tacoma Ledger.
s