The Prescott daily news., 1910-02-25
STAIE CArllOL NEWS
REPUBLICANS NOT AUTHORIZED
 TO VOTE WITH DEMOCRATS.
Attorney General Norwood Gives Opin- ion on Existing Statutes-Of In
 terest to All Parties.

Attorney General Norwood has ren- dered an opinion that will be of par ticuar interest to the various political parties, and which is, in brief, that swhen one party holds a primary elec- tion the other party has no right to in trude; that the new primary election law did not mean in any sense for in- stance to allow Republican to vote in Democratic primary, or vice versa.
 The opinion was rendered in response to report circulated in some of the northern counties of the state to the effect that Republicans were claiming the right to vote in the next primary, March 30, on the ground that all that is necessary is that they shall be ''qual- flied electors.'
 Attorney General Norwood says a party has the right to require something in addition to the qualifications of an ordinary elector, in a primary election, and illustrates the point by calling at tention to the fact that the Republi- cans could limit their primaries to white Republicans if they wanted to. The opinion puts quietus on the notion that the primary election will be an ombnibus affair.
 The opinion of the attorney general is, in full, as follows:
 Mr. w. A. Edwards, Evening Shade,
 Arkansas:
 Dear Sir am in receipt of your communication of the Sth. inst, in which you state that some persons in your county claim that Republicans as well as Democrats can vote in the Dem ocratic primary election to be held in March, and you ask for my construction of the primary election law of 1909.
 I have received several letters upon this question, and it appears that some are of the opinion, because Act 165 of the Acts of 1909 prohibits any person from voting in the primary election not possessing all of the qualifications of an elector, that it necessarily follows that they have a right to vote if they are qualified electors, regardless of DO litical affiliations.
 It is my opinion that this construc tion of the law would be erroneous
 Previous to the passage of the Act of 1909, Section 2S92, Kirby's Digest, was in force, and this section provided that all primary elections should be legal elections, provided the county central committee of the party holding the election, twenty (20) days before tho primary. file in the office of the county clerk of the county a certificate certify. ing that such primary would be held under the provisions of that section.
 The Act of 1909 legalizes all primary elections and specifically repeals the section above mentioned, but it was any political party from prescribing the qualifications of electors who de- sired to participate in any primary held by such political party. In other words, the law simply says that they must be qualified electors, but it does not prohit a political party from re- quiring ad itional qualifications to en- title the eector to participate in the primary of such political party.
 For illustrations: The Democratic par ty has the right to provide that only white qualified electors may partici- pate in its primary; and there is noth- ing in the law that would prevent the Republican party from limiting the right of suffrage in its primary to white Republicans, or any other restric- tions that the rules of the party may prescribe.
 Of course, you will understand I am only required and authorized to advise certain officials, and I have only given you my personal opinion in this matter because the Act of 1909 seems to be misunderstood by some, and what have said to you may enable some tc read the act more carefully, after which l am sure that there can be but | little doubt but that my construction ot the act is correct
 Yours very truly,