The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-07-16
VOTERS MAKE
4 SENATOR
Interesting Phases of the
Experiment in
Oregon.
advertiser Correspondence, Copyright
u L -.

advertiser Correspondence, Copyright
by Frederic j. Haskin.}
The most conspicuous example of the
change of the voters from the attitude
of helping an aspirant to 'get the NOM
nation" to a determination to ''make
the nomination themselves, is afford
ed by the recent success of Governor
Chamberlain of Oregon, a Democrat,
who was selected for United States
senator at a general direct primary IN
a Republican state In that case the
party voters not only absolved their
partisans in the legislature from loyalty
to the chosen party candidate, but ac-
tually instructed the majority of the
legislature to vote against its party can.
didate. The Oregon general primary
for senator is in effect an extractor
stitutional method of choosing senators
by direct vote, and is not party pri-
mary. Yet it is the direct outgrowth of
the determination of the voters to take
into their own hands the elective power.
They learned how to do it in party pri-
maries, and they have carried things a
step farther toward matured democ,
racy.
Oregon and Oklahoma are both ex
perimenting with direct legislation by
means of the initiative and referendum.
Other states are not yet ready to take
such radical departures from the rep
resentative form of government, but the
Increasing power of the direct nominal
ing primary shows that the people gen
orally are inclining in that direction.
Unsted States senators are nominated
by party primaries in many states, and
each biennium adds others to the list.
The convention for nominating county
officers is almost extinct, so generally
has the primary election nominating
system been applied to minor offices in
rural districts.
Abuses of the powers of delegated
conventions, the opportunity for cOrrup.
tion, and the dangers of dark horses
all had to do with the downfall of the
convention in counties and cities. Even
more potent than these was the con-
slant danger to party organization from
possible "bolts. A candidate who is
defeated in a convention by intrigue is
much more apt to bolt and head another
ticket than is the candidate who has
been defeated for the nomination by
majority of the voters of his party.
The latter is a more convincing defeat.
The voters, finding their power in
nominating minor officers, have gradual
1y reached out until they now control
congressional and state offices, in a
majority of the states. The demand
for direct primaries is so strong in
Others that the system bids fair to be,
come universal within decade. The
next move of the direct primary advo-
Gates viii be made on the national con,
MENTIONS.
The movement varies in the several
states according to local conditions, of
course. For sake of an example, take
the case of Tennessee, which is Just now
midway between the convention and
primary system. Two years ago NJ. r.
Patterson, one of the Democratic as
pirants for governor, demanded that the
state committee order primary The
convention forces. won and no primary
was held. But the aspirant who de-
manded the primary was nominated by
the convention and was elect "a CIV
erncr.
This year, former Senator Edward w.
Carmaek became a candidate for the
Democratic nomination against Cover
nor Patterson, and he demanded a direct
primary. Practically all county and
city nominations and all congressional