The Forrest City times., 1913-03-21

ATTORNEY GEKRAL's OPINION.
Quotes Lawyer and Cites Precedent
Acknowledges Question Is
Hard One.

81 "iNiAiS inc CONSTITUTIONAL prov lS1OlS
covering the gubernatorial situation:
nave your letter Of the l1th inst,
stating the facts of the resignation Of
Governor Robinson, the assumption O.
TIE duties of the office OF governor by
Yourself, as president OF The senate.
the election of Senator J. NJ. Futrell
as president of the senate, and asking
my opinion as to which OF you should
De entitled to hold the office of gov.
ernor, after the adjournment of the
present general assembly.
| confess the question is not without
difficulty and doubt. The answer de
pends upon proper construction OF
TWO sections of the constitution One
Is Section II of Article 6, and reads
as follows:
In the case of the death, conviction
or impeachment, failure to qualify, res
lgnation, absence from the state or
| other disability of the governor the
powers, duties and emouments of the
office for the remainder of the term.
or until the disability be removed, or
governor elected and qualified, shall
devolve upon and accrue to the presi-
dent of the senate"
If this was all there is on the sub.
ject, there could be no doubt, for the
! language is plain and unmist akable
The other section is II of Article 5,
and the part that concerns this cues
tion is as follows
Whenever, at the clo2e of
any session, it may appear that the
term of the member elected president
of the senate will expire before the
next regular session, the senate shall
elect another president from those mem.
bers whose terms of office continue
over, who shall qualify and remain
president OF the senate until his sue.
cessOr may be elected and qualified,
and who, in the case of vacancy in
the office of governor, shall perform
the duties and exercise the powers OF
governor, as elsewhere herein provid-
ed"
When Governor Robinson resigned
and created the vacancy, you were
president of the senate, and as such
succeeded TO the office of governor
with its powers, duties and emolu-
ments for the remainder of the term.
or until another governor shall be
elected and qualified. That seems very
| plain form the reading of the first
section quoted.
If Governor Robinson had seen fit
to withhold his resignation until Sen
ator Futreil was elected. and until the
adjournment OF the legislature, and
had then resigned, Senator Futrell
would have become acting governor.
because he, and not you, would have
| been president of the senate This
seems plain from the language of the
second section set forth above.
| SO, think the president of the SEN
ate. in office at the time a vacancy
occurs in the office of governor, is
| entitled to hold said office as long as
the vacancy is not otherwise provided
for by law. This construction makes
/ the two sections harmonious and gives
effect to both.
othdNOi L uAl Nll ~ iiOh btNCliAN
president of the senate until the legis
| lature adjourns, and when that time
shall come no vacancy in the office
of governor will exist, assuming that
you continue to perform the functions
Of that office. | cannot believe that
/ the constitution makers intended. in
a case of this kind, that the president
of the senate, after taking possession
of the office OF governor, should sur
render the same in few days to an
/ other person, subsequently elected
president of the senate, else they
would have indicated such intention
in apt language.
! No SPECIFIC limitation of time is
| placed upon the right of the president
of the senate to hold the office of gov
ernor in such case, except the limit
! of his own term of office as senator.
! Your term of office as senator will
expire with the general election in
! September, 1914. You could not hold
the office of governor beyond that
time; and to provide for possible va
canacy in office, or a disability of the
| governor during the time between the
! general election and the meeting of
the next general assembly the second
section quoted above was made part
| OF the constitution; and the senate
thereby required to elect president
at the close of the session from among
the holdover members.
There is an implied Imitation how
ever, of your right to hold the office,
for the constitution requires you to
call an election to provide another
governor Of the peoples choosing,
which call you VIII doubtless make in
due season.
am strengthened IN my opinion
that YOU are entitled 10 holi the OF
flee alter the adjournment of the gen.
eral assembly, by the able opinion de
livered by Judge L. NJ Rose, under