Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1910-06-03
VOTERS INSTRUCTED
TO Vote FOR SIX
SECRETARY OF STATE WILL
WILL FOLLOW. ADVICE OF
ATTORNEY GENERAL
BALLOT" WILL IN
sTRUcT ELECTORS TO VOTE
SIX CANDIDATES
ATTORNEY GENERAL Believes
THIS TO BE LEGISLATIVE
INTENT

''''~
INTENT
In issuing instructions to county
auditors, Secretary of State ALFRED
Blaisdell will advise them in relation
to the printing of the judiciary bal
, lot" to have printed thereon the in
} structions to vote for six candidates
instead Of three.
The secretary will so instruct be-
cause Attorney General Miller so ad
vises, and he is the official adviser
of the administration family
There has been considerable dis
cussion of this matter and attorneys
do not agree on the proposition. That
everybody may have chance to con.
strue the English language as con-
tanned in the act providing for a non
partisan judiciary, the full text of the
law passed by the last legislature is
published herewith, as follows:
Section I. In all petitions and afS,
davits to be filed by or in behalf of
candidates for nomination at the pri-
mary election to the office of Judge
of the supreme or district court, no
reference shall be made to a party
ballot or to the party utilization of
such candidate.
Sec. 2. All primary elections at
which candidates for judge of the SUI
preme or district court are to be nom-
mated, there shall be separate bal
lots upon which shall be placed the
names of the candidates for such Of
flee, which ballot shall be entitled the
Judiciary ballot" and the names of
such candidates shall be placed there
on without party designation, and
there shall be designated thereon the
NUMBER OF JUDGES each elector
is entitled to vote for. This ballot
shall be delivered to each elector by
the proper election officer, and the
candidate on such Judiciary ballot"
receiving the highest number of votes
to the extent of double the number
of those to be elected (three are to
be elected), provided there are that
many or more candidates running for
such Office or offices, shall be duly
nominated.
Sec. 8. At the general election
there shall be separate ballot, upon
which shall be placed the names of
the candidates for Judge of the su-
preme court and judge of the district
court who have been nominated as
herein provided, which ballot shall be
entitled the judicial ballot" and the
names of all candidates shall be plac-
ed thereon without party designation,
and there shall be designated thereon
the NUMBER OF JUDGES each elec-
tor is entitled to vote for. This bal
lot shall be delivered to each elector,
and the candidates on such "judi-
ciary ballot" receiving the highest
number of votes to the number of
those to be elected shall be duly
elected.
The capitals and the language in
the parenthesis are ours.
Constituting this statute the attorney
general says:
Hon. Alfred Blaisdell,
! Secretary OF State,
Bismarck, N. Oak.
Dear Sir: l am in receipt of your
favor under date of June 2nd in which
you ask my opinion on the following
question: Under the provisions of
chapter 80, laws of 1909, known as
the non-partisan judiciary act, there
are three supreme court judges to be
elected at the June election, and there
are six candidates for such position
to be named at the primaries. The
question is, shall each voter be in
structed to vote for each candidate,
that is vote six times, or shall he be
instructed to vote for three candi-
dates at said primaries?'
l have carefully considered the act
you refer to and, while am free to
confess that the same is far from
being clear, l am convinced that the
intent of the legislature was that six
candidates, if so many file their petit
tons, should be nominated at the
primary election and go on the bal
lot in the fall, and that proper con-
struction of the act requires that the
ballot should instruct the voter to
vote for six candidates.
Respectfully yours,
ANDREW MILLER,
Atfornov Conoro1