The Van Buren press., 1912-09-07
ton, to select the county commission.

tion, TO select the count! commission
ers.
The county commissioners are
required, under the proposed meas
ure. to meet at the court house in each
county at o'clock In the forenoon on
the second Monday in August prior tc
the general election and 1t is proyid
ed that no proceedings shall be had
with less than ,hree members present
until two OF the members shall have
remained at the place Of meeting for
an hour and shall have had the third
member publicly called three times
at intervals OF twenty minutes. The
law also provides that the counting
of the ballots shall begin immediatel;
upon the closing Of the polls and shall
be continued without interruption un'
I'll the count Is completed. The re
turns are required to be made to the
county commissioners within "a hours
after the closing OF the polls and the
commissioners are directed to declare
the results as soon as the returns from
all the precincts are received, but in
no event later than the second day
after the election.
The petitions asking for the submis
sion OF the proposed law to the peo
pie, was signed by about $4,000 voters
Those in charge of the campaign be
ing made in support Of the measure
declare that it is not partisan move
ment but that the signatures OF sew
eral thousand Democrats were attach
ed TO the petitions which were filed
in the office Of the secretary Of state
1t is asserted that the fight is one
for honest elections and that the
members of all parties are interested
in It.
RemmeI Gives His View.
81 do not think that this could be
regarded as a partisan measure" said
II. l.. Remmel, chairman Of the Re
publican state central committee, in
discussing the matter. 1T is one in
which the people OF all parties are
concerned and many prominent Demo
Gratis either signed the petitions for
the initiation of the measure or have
expressed themselves as being in IA.
vor OF II.
The principal object OF the pro.
posed new law is to give the two domi.
nant political parties each the right
to name the election commissioners
and the election judges representing
them. This is of as much Importance
to one party as to another for it will
take from the hands OF the state elec.
tion commissioners the power to ap'
point whomever they desire as county
commissioners, Democrats as well as
Republicans, The county commission.
ers, under the proposed law, must be
selected from lists furnished by the
chairmen of the two state central
committees and this insures that the
Democrats and Republicans alike will
get the men whom they want as coun'
ty commissioners
civilian Jennings Bryan, in ,et.
ter addressed to the Oklahoma con.
stitutional convention, declared that II
is not wise to allow the dominant par.
ty to select representatives from the
minority party or parties. Each par
ty should have the right to select its
representation; in no other way can
fairarss be insured he declared.
Where the dominant party selects
the minority representation, the selec.
ton is too often made from those whe
are only nominally members of the
minority party, II the party organi'
zatlons are allowed to select represen'
tatives, the persons selected will not
only be bona fide members OF their
respective parties, but owing their al
legiance to their own organizations,
they will be { to be more trust
worthy
"The other principal features Of the
proposed lew are those which provide
for public meetings Of the various
election boards at stated times and
for the early counting OF the ballots
aud announcement OF the results.
These are provisions to which | do not
believe there can be any objection from
those who want TO have honest elec
tIons and they have been approved
by many OF the leading men Of the
state, regardless Of their party affIlia
tons We believe that there is de-
sire for fair and honest elections, The
dominant party will alawys have two
Of the three county commissioners,
two OF the three election Judges in
every precinct and all OF the state
commissioners Aside from the fact
that each OF the two dominant par
ties would be given the right to have
Judges and clerks Of their own Sc
lection, there are no vital changes
from the present laws"