The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1908-09-12

1
result OF the campaign just passed
O. +. BledSoe was then called upol
and said that while he would hav
preferred to be silent, yet as he wa
called out and as it his custom to al
D ways express his real feelings and tn
, truth he would say that the commit
S tee had violated every principle o
Democracy and good government
} They had seated man f.Om Clay
. coun'y Frank II CritZ who had nj
more right to seat than any person
in the street and had thus given hin
deciding vOice-nOt only SO, and moi
. only had they shut off all debate bu,
they had grossly violated the funda
mental principle of the primary elec
tiOn law which states in language
that even an attorney general cannot
weaken the force of that ANY can
didate who receives the highest popu.
lar vote cast for the office which he
seeks in the first primary shall there
by become the nominee Of his party
for such office; PROVIDED ALSO
1T BE A MAJORITY OF ALL
VOTES CAST FOR SUCH OFFICE.
They had contary to this funda-
mental law nominated Il. U. SiSSOn
when there was another candidate
hence still two highest candidates" "
and majority of 1885 votes against
said T. U SisSon That while he
(BledSoe) had always been a straight
DemOcrat-had worn the red shirt
, and always done whatever the Demo-
cratic party told him to do and
would under no circumstance listen
to suggestion Of independency yet
they, the majority of, the committee
and the nominee, would have to ac-
count to the people for the gross
violation here today OF their
sovereignty and right to choose their
candidates by clear majority of all
the votes c2St'.
In connection with the above
strange proceedings, it may be stated
that II. U. SiSSon went to Jackson
just before the meeting of the com
mittee and by Earnest request" Ob-
tanned from the Attorney General his
personal opinion to which was neces-
Sarily, yet unjustly, added in public
SEM imenL at least the weight of his
official position. The unte1abIe
character of this opinion is shown by
the fact that he does not quote the
real fundamental principle OF the
primary law in Section 300 but only
the clause following it. The main
principle is ANY candidate who
receives the highest popular vote cast
for the office which he seeks in the]
first primary, shall thereby become
the nominee Of his party for such
office; PROVIDED ALSO 1T BE A
MAJORITY OF ALL THE VOTES
CAST FOR SUCH OFFICE. The
proviso is the key to the whole situa.
tion. That is absolute and must
stand--that is no candidate can be
the nominee Of his party without re-
ceiving ID majority Of all the votes
cast. Letting this provision stand,
how perfectly in accordance with the
spirit Of the Jaw and ordinary con.
truction OF law for the committee
to have decided that one candidate !
having withdrawn and then leaving |
still two candidates. before them |
they are necessarily the two CAN.
DIDATES who have received the |
highest popular vote and their names
must be submitted toa second pr,-
mary in order that the sovereign peO.
pie may decide by maj 'rity the Can
d'date whom they prefer. No por.
tiOn OF the sovereign voters can be
by the actiOa uf a can.
didate in withdrawing. Section
BIS quoted wrongly by the Att"rney
General refers only to the case where
there has been no primary and where
there is only one candidate. Ii 0. +
BIedsoe had Withdrawn before the
iecisiun Of the committee that deci-
sion would have been right. but he
was still a candidate and insisted uD
his right to run in second primary.
Many great lawyers whose personal
opinions" are worth more than that
)f the Attorney General are against
1im. To show the unsoundness of the
alters position, let is quote the
grand opinion OF grand man DR.. Il.
F. Ward, Of Winona, 1.-The ruling OF
,he committee was clearly wrong as
ar as the purpose and intent Ct the
aw are concerned''-'the primary,
)ases and fundamental proposition is
hat a candidate must have a majority
II the votes cast to establish and
egalizc his nomination. "The pro-
;ess by which the committee reached
Is conclusion was little less than
arcical." "In this case the end Of
he law has been defeated and the
people have been deprived of the op-
,ortunity to declare by their votes
Who is the choice OF the majority"
See Winona Times Sept. 4.
Very Respectfully |.
Your fellow. citizen, l.
Oscar F. BledSOe.