The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1909-04-02
The Election of Senators.

A conflict of opinion exists about the
new primary law and the office OF
United States Senator. One of the OBJ
jections urged by Governor Patterson to
the law when he vetoed it was that it
did not provide that candidates for the
Senate should be nominated under it,
along with Congressman and other Off
cials. This objection was raised, it
must be remembered, by opponents of
the reform movement. Supporters of
the bill have argued and now maintain
that the law does apply to the office of
United States Senator.
A careful examination of the primary
law shows beyond question that the
legislative intent was to include the Of
flee of United States Senator, but it
must be admitted that the first section
of the act is susceptible of double con-
struction, and if it were not made plain
in subsequent sections what the legisla-
tive intent was, the conclusion would
be, not without reason, that the law
does not apply. However, it is plain
that it was the purpose of the trainers of
the bill and the intent of the General
Assembly to nominate candidates for
United States Senator under this pri-
mary election law.
The first section of the law exempts
the following offices: Judges of the
Supreme Court, judges of the Court of
Civil Appeals, chancellors, criminal and
circuit judges and attorneys general.
1t will be observed that the office of
United States Senator is not in the list
of exemptions.
Following the exemption clause it is
provided that all party nominations of
candidates hereafter in this State made
for offices-county, State and Congress
sional, elective by the electors of the
State, or for offices created by the CON
stitution of the State, elective by the
General Assembly in joint session, shall
be made in and by primary election
United States Senators are not cleo
tive by the electors of the State" but it
is argued by number of well informed
people that the office of United States
Senator is created by the constitution of
the State as well as by the federal CON
stitution. The State itself is created
when the constitution is adopted and it
could well be said that the creation of
the State creates the office of Senator.
Under this construction of the word
create" the primary law would apply
to the office of United States Senator as
clearly as it applies to all others.
Unfortunately, as we have already
observed, the first section of the law
may be construed two ways. This
should not be. 1t should be so plain
that its meaning would admit of no con-
troversy. However, we maintain that
the legislative intent was to make the
law apply to the office of United States
Senator, and it is our opinion that the
courts will uphold such construction
In section SO, sub-sections 8 and 5, we
find references to the vote for United
States Senator. The first reference in
this section to this office is merely in
passing; the second reference makes it
the duty of the State board of primary
commissioners to certify to the
State convention nominations to the
Senate of the United States and officers
pertaining to the entire State. %
Section 40 assesses candidates for
United States Senator not more than
$500. Section 40 provides for the quail
ification of candidates entering the pri-
mary, mentioning for United States
among the number.
Clearly, in view of these provisions,
t was the intention of the Legislature