The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-04-10
TIL. PARTY REGISTRATION LAW.

pleasure that the supreme court al
the state nphoids the cons,itutlonal-
ity nf tho, law providing for the reg
jstcriug of the voters by party htfllli
tions. This View is not lhndatorN of
,I,, court. hut is based ON tho demand
for so correcting the Weaknesses of
the primary law that it will become
a par, of the working power of u
About a week the Times
commented at length ON The opinion
Ut tho attorney general that me law
was unconstitutional. That View MAS
so absurd that 50 murh at variance
with common sense, that even Il lay
man could see its faults.
The decision of the supreme court
sets M rest the question of consti-
nationality as we'll as the danger of
having the law upset 10y the attorney
general. 1t is now mp To the assess
.,rs MS III" designated means of en-
rcuting the law. 10 carry out its pro-
visions fully.
The law creates no hardship and
its enforcement need not produce any
cnlba rraSsmcnt. The voter is simply
required Ia designate the party with
which he is affiliated and is so re-
corded. lie is required To make oath
:,s to the facts set forth in the dec
laration. II he is missed by the as
SCISSOR and is party man enough To be
Interested, he can make the rfquircd
oath before Il notary public and file
the same with the county auditor.
Tho law also provides for swearing
10 the party allegiance on the pri-
mary election day. if the voter has
been omitted for certain reasons.
The effect on the law will he to
prevent the members of n party
from voting for candidates in anoth-
or party. And certainly no IL who
believes in the same honesty of poli-
tics as of business can object TO this
requirement.
The law on his score is clear and
pretty strong. II reads:
"rhc Judges and inspectors "f cleo
ton when handing Il ballot To Il voter
shall inform him that nc must vote
for the candidates of the political
party such ballot represents only. and
the voter shall call for the ballot rep
%rescntinG tn" party or principle with
which he :tfiliatcs and he shall re-
ccivr such ballot and no other. .
II shall nc unlawful for amy person
to- call for nj vote a ballot at the pri-
marx election except Il ballot
representing tho party on principle
with which he ahiliat.s. and per-
son who has reason TO believe that the
ballot called for 10y the voter does not
represent the party or principle with
which said voter atfiliatrs. may rhal-
lengc such vote. and he shall not he
entitled to cast his ballot unless he
makes and files with tho inspector OF
such primary election an affidavit tc
the effect that such ballot represents
the political party with which he af-
fliates."
The law provides that the pena1
code relations as tn the franchise are
applicable as ~punishm"nts for viola
tinns of the primary law.
The law removes the greatest GrieN-
nnce against tho primary system. II
has nothing to do with the right and
privileges of the elcctor in the gen
rral election. The only class of Not-
"rs left ont seem tn h" those who d.
not have Very strong party love. Trob-
ably tho lawmakers thought those
who were not identified with the party
of right should not participate in the
naming of tn. party's candidates. The
law, in effect. restores the party con,
hitions THAI We're upset by tho adop'
ton of the primary plan.
We believe the Times WAS the first
paper in the state to advocate some
plan of keeping the party member:
within their WI party. In the lnsis'
lativc session of 1907. when the pri.
mary law was under consideration y.
that body, both in its Bismarck cor
~rcspondcnce and editorially the Time:
pointed out this weakness in the law
and the plan adopted Il; year ago ant
held constitutional by the suprcln.
court only differs from the one ndvo
Gated by the Times in 1907 in tn.
method OF registering the party af
%filiation.