Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1912-06-12
A. B. CUMMINS, Iowa

popular will has figured. Even now,
in spite of the attention they have at
tracted. real preferential primaries for
the selection of presidential candidates
are established by law in only a small
minority OF the states. The first state
to enact presidential primary law
was Oregon In 1910. The other states
which have adopted the innovation In
some form or another are California.
Illinois. Maryland. Massachusetts, Min
and South Dakota and Wisconsin
Pennsylvania and Ohio have not pref
erential primaries In the ordinary sense
of the term. They choose congress
district delegates to the: national con
vention by primary, but leave the elec-
ton of delegates at large to state
convention. In accordance with old
usage.
Maine and Michigan have preferen
tial primary laws. but they were not
operative in this years campaign.
"Voluntary" presidential primaries are
in vogue in several states. including
Kansas, Georgia. Florida and Rhode
Island. In all the states the agitation
for the new system was led by the sup.
porters of Roosevelt and Wilson.
North Dakota Brand Of Primary.
In North Dakota no restrictions are
imposed upon legal voters. Any man
may express his preference without re-
gard to his party affiliations at the last
election. The North Dakota law re-
qutres the delegates to take an oath
to vote In exact accordance with their
Instructions. This means that they
cannot shift their vote from La Fol
lette. to whom they are pledged. to
any other candidate whose name may
come before the convention, nor could
they under the terms OF The law vote
to make unanimous the vote for any
other candidate. even though all. the
other delegates should 50 vote. This
provision. however. Is of little prac-
tical effect since the delegates. If they
ignored 1t, would be amenable to no
punishment under tue penal code and
since, ii they were held to have com,
mitted an offenSe. it would come IN
der the jurisdiction Of illinois and not
of North Dakota.
The illinois primary. which played
so important part in the successes Of
Colonel Roosevelt, was the result of
the passage Of al emergency bill sign
ed by Governor Deneen on sick bed
late in March. Under its provisions
the vote Of each congress district is
advisory to the national convention
delegates from that district, and the
vote of the state at large is advisory
to the delegates at large. Petitions for
candidates must bear no fewer than
1900 names.
A National Primary Proposed.
An objection frequently made to the
state presidential primary is that it
forces the unit rule upon the delegates
and utilities the instruction of the CON-
munities which elected the delegates
who are in the minority. This objec-
ton has been met by the proposition
that, instead Of state primaries to ex.
press a preference for a presidential
nominee. national presidential pri-
maries should be held Senator Cum
Minis this spring introduced bill to
that effect, which failed to excite much
enthusiasm in the senate. 1t proposed
a national primary to be held on July
8 and every four years thereafter on
the second Monday of July. The re-
suits of such primary election would
be canvassed by national board for
primary elections" and the candidate
Of each political party receiving the
greatest humber Of votes would be GER
tilted by that board as the candidate
to be voted upon in the November cleo.
tions 49,. .:.aa
The bill would require primary cleo
tons of candidates for president. vice
president and presidential electors. The
names of candidates on primary bal.
lots Under the bill would be arranged
in separate columns. with one column
headed independent of party"
If it were passed the Cummins bill
would mean the end of the national
conventions of the great parties. More
than that. it would probably mean
the abolition. OF the electoral college
and Of the possibility of the election
Of presidential candidate who has &C
tually received a smaller popular vote
than bis unsuccessful opponent