The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1912-01-25
New State Law Puts Limits
on Activities of Candi-
dates in City Election.
CARRIAGES UNDER THE BAN
Voters Must Walk to Polls or Lose
Their Votes and no Paid Workers
May Be Employed by Any of the
Candidates for Office.

With the coming of the next spring
election voters in Kenosha will have
chance to register their opinions al
the polls without any interference or
the palt of paid workers and the web
cradle campaign carriage is to BE- q
thing OF. the past. Unler the new law
relating to corrupt practices in cleo
tion it is made necessary Tor voters tc
walk to the polls. Nor is this all. Can
didates are not permitted to have any
paid workers about the voting places
and men who distribute cards Of the
candidates must be men who are actual
ly in favor of his candidacy and not
men who are paid for the work. The
law will come as hard blow to a LOT
of people who have counted on lit
tie spending money as a result of work
ing for or against the election of Ger
tain candidates on election day.
Believing that the provisions of the
law were revolutionary the matter has
been taken up by several people with
the attorney general and they have
been given to understand that the law
means just what it says. Under this
new law the politicians must do al
of their work before election day and
leave the voters to decide without arg
ument. There are grave doubts it q
candidate could even call one of his
henchmen on the telephone and urge
him to vote without being liable ia
prosecution. The law is just as binding
on the primary election as it positively
makes it impossible for a candidate OIL
any committee managing his candidacy
for office to spend one cent in any
manner on election day. The law should
work wonders in the expense of run,
ming for office in Kenosha and through
out the state.
The section of the law governing this
feature is as follows:
"No person nor personal campaign
or party committee shall pay or incur
any obligation, expressed or implied, to
pay any sum of money or thing of
value whatever for services to be per.
formed on the day of any primary OF
election, in behalf of any candidate
party or measure, to be voted upon at
said primary or election; or for any
political service performed on such
day or for any loss of time or damage
suffered by attendance at the polls at
the primary or election, or in register.
ing for voting, or for the expense of
transportation of any voter to or from
the polls on such day"
The penalty provided is as follows:
"Section 94-3S. Any person VIC
lating any provision of section 94-1
to 94-38, inclusive, Of the statutes
shall, upon conviction thereof, be pun.
ished by imprisonment in the county
jail for a period of not less than one
month nor more than one year, or by
Imprisonment in the state prison for a
period Of not less than one year OF
more than three years, or ky a fine of
not less than twenty-five dollars NOR
more than one thousand dollars, or by
both such fine and Imprisonment; and
no person so convicted shall be per-
mitted to take or hold the office to
which he was elected, if any, or re-
ceive the emoluments thereof. =
1t is the duty of the district attor.
ney to prosecute complaints made I'm.
der this section.
These are not all of the provisions of
the new law and people who plan to
be candidates for election should Sc,
cure a copy of the statutes and read
chapter $50. They will find that they
will have to eliminate a lot of cam
paign methods that have been popular
in Kenosha in the future. In fact, it is
not at all certain that some of the can
didates for offices have not already
flaerantly violated the law in advanc-
ing their campaign.