The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1911-03-02
PRIMARY LINEUP
HOUgE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE
HAS BILL FOR PARTY
ENROLMENT
E-APPORTIONMENT PLAN
Joint Committee Of House and Senate
Work Out Agreeable Plan For
Reapportionment and
Submit Bill


Reapportionment and
Submit Bill
Pierre-The elections committee of
the house has introduced a bill Oh. b.
No. 1922 prescribing rules and regula-
tons for the REGISTRATION and enroll
ment of voters at primary elections.
The bill provides for a Party Pri-
mary Enrolment Book" which the
county auditor is to send to the cleo
ton judges. The book is to be wide
enough that each party may have one
column and provision is also made
for an independent column. Under
the party name in each colum is the
oath which each elector voting must
sign.
The elector has merely to sign his
name in the column TO which party
he belongs and is then given the
proper ballot by the judges. After the
primary the book is to become a rec
ord of the county auditing depart
ment, where IL will remain on file un-
til after the following biennial cleo
ton.
This bill would seem to overcome
the acknowledged principal defect in
our present primary system-that OF
permitting the voters of n party
to interfere with and perhaps dictate
the selection of another party's ticket.
1t will be noticed that an eleCtor is
not bound TO remain with his party at
the election; he states in his oath
that he intends to do so. The idea
Is TO make each voter go on record
as regards his politics-then he can
vote as he sees fit. 1t is i~nconceiv-
able that a democrat or a republican
would go on record as belonging to
another party merely for the purpose
of helping to select that other party's
ticket.
This bill should meet the public
demand for a remedy of the existing
evils of the present primary system
and seems to have the general en-
dorsement Of the voters.
Senate bill No. 22S, introduced by
the municipal corporations committee
and which has passed the senate, has
been reno, ted favorably by the house
committee. Some amendments, how
ever, are added. The amended bill
provides that in commission govern
ed cities having over 10, 1000 inhabit-
ants. the salaries Of the commission
ers may be raised { ON $500 to $500
per year and that of the mayor from
81 500 to $4,000 per annum
The proposition of raising the salar-
les, however, must be submitted to the
people to be decided by them at the
election.
Another feature which is new is that
of having the commissioners elected
by a majority vote instead of the
plurality. Under the present condi-
tons, a plurality vote often amounts
to a minority vote.
This bill remedies this condition and
conforms more closely to the wishes
of the electors. A third feature OF
the bin is that of reducing the num-
Der of commissioners from five to
three, if the citizens SO desire and
express such wish at the polls.
Watertown wants a car line from
the city to Lake Kempeska, and as
the city Is not la~ge enough to come
under the law of two years ago., Senate
Bill No. 25S, was introduced, providing
that the thirty year proposition apply
to cities of 1000 and over
This bill passed the senate and was
sent over to the house for consider
alton. when the bill was before the
committee of the house, representa-
tives from still smaller cities appear
ed and said that they too might want
car lines and thought that they should
under the same act.
The house committee has now de-
cided to report the bill applying the
thirty-year idea to all cities of 1000
inhabitants or over.
House bill No. 39S is a committee
bill providing for the division of the
state into three congressional DIS
tricts. One is to be west OF the Mis-
souri,; n east of the Missouri and
south of the southern line OF Hughes,
Beadle and Brookings counties and
the third east of the Missouri and
north of the southern line OF the
above named counties. The bill has
the provision that until the state has
three congressman, the representa-
tives of the state shall be elected at
large.
The senate today passed the wom-
ans suffrage bill, by a vote of % to 10.
The galleries were filed when the vote
was taken. and after the success of the
measure, Henault was presented with
an immense bouquet for successfully
championing the cause in the upper
house.
The bin placing the regulation OF
companies under the juris-
diction OF the railroad commission
passed the senate, and is now awaiting
the signature of the governor.
The governor today signed the en-
ployers' liability act.
Lead-Brakeman Fritz, of the Bur