Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-04-01
NEW PRIMARY LAW.
AND ORGANIC ACT.
MA Y NOT AGREE.
Ieontinued nom page onel

he Is candidate at such primary.
The organic act provides in>seetioa
~ as follows: ,..,. ~
THAT a general election shall be
held on the Tuesday next after the
/ first Monday in November. 1900, and
teveFy second year thereafter 49,.
The purpose usually to De served
by a primary law is to provide for the
nomination of candidates for Office by
/ direct vote of the people, but it will
be seen that by the terms of the sec
tons CT act ISL quoted above. under
certain circumstances. candidate at
{ the primary may be duly elected to
! office and need not stand for election
at the general election provided for
l by the organic act. And as section 10
q the organic act provides that no
person shall sit as senator or rep
Preventative in the legislature unless
elected under and in conformity there
Ito, 1t would seem that in that respect
there is a possible conflict between
the organic act and the primary law.
There can be no question that
4 NIlGT6 I'LL fdCL OI%IIIc tSfl6ldluIC
| in direct conflict with the organic
act. It must fail, and you suggest that
possibly section IS CT the organic act
may serve to solve the difficulty. Sec
tien sS5 includes the following:
!" The legislature of the territory
shall have the right to alter or amend
any part Of the election laws of said
i.
the election of delegate to Congress
and It's actions shall be the law with
full binding fofoe, until altered, amend
ed or repealed by Congress-
The difficulty with this argument is
tEat there is nothing in the election
laws Of the territory which treats of
the date OF the general election, such
date being fixed by the organic act in
section IA above quoted, and while the.
paragraph from section s. refers to
the election laws providing for an cleo
tion of delegate to Congress, there is
nothing in the election laws of the
territory en- this subject, the whole
matter of the election of the delegate
being contained in section IS of the
organic act IT may be argued from
the fact that Congress has provided
that the legislature might amend the.
laws relating to the election of the
delegate and that the only law on the
subject is part ct the organic act, that.
thus Congress Intended that the leg
islature might alter or amend the or.
ganics act in all matters relating to,
elections
But | do not put much faith in this
line Of argument. for it certainly can
not have been intended by Congress
that the legislature should be permit.
ted to amend these portions Of the
organic Act which brovfie fer ti1esquais'
ifcations Of electors fsections 6f--and
c.. organic act1. And there IS no.
reason why If the legislatures can,
change the date of the general cleo.
ton. It can not also prescribe new
qualifications for voters.
After a comparison of section IA
of the organic act and similar provi-
sions in the constitutions and statutes
OF the various states, / find that by
far the majority Of the statutory or
constitutional provisions relating to
this matter use practically the same
phraseology: that is. the first election.
is set for the first Tuesday after, the
first Monday of November in given
year and the phrase every two years
thereafter or every four years there
after follows. In some statutes and
constitutions, the word in is inter.
iected in that phrase so that it reads
and in every second year, etc. Re-
Vised Statutes. Minnesota, section
$3.50 In certain other constitutions
the phrase 'biennially thereafter on
the. same day is used Revised Stat
utes, Indiana, section 1914