The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1915-06-29

chairman has no authority in law t,
make such selections, and any recon
mendation SO made by the state chair
man is a nulity.
con Jan. Is, in message to the leg
isature (see senate journal, page l5iD
| said: 1T is essential that we shouc
have agencies by which the people
may evidence their Judgment without
political machine interference. This
should extend not only to the state
but also it's subdivisions.
81 still adhere to that declaration
and during my term of office as gov
ernor it shall be my constant endeavor
to render impossible machine rule. not
only in the democratic party, but ey.
cry other political party in this state.
With the assurance that you are in
! sympathy with this purpose, | have
selected you as the republican repre-.
sentative on this board.
1T is my desire that the republican
members of the county election boards
should not be appointed until the same
are selected at a meeting of the re-
publican county central committee.
regularly called. and at which no proX-
les are to be voted; and that the same
rule shall apply as to the appointment
of the democratic members of the
county election boards. BY this means
not only will machine rule in parties
be Circumvented in "A degree, but the
people, through such local agencies.
have the duty and the responsibility
and opportunity Of seeing that they
have honest and fair elections. Then
the discretion rests within the state
election board to select the secre-
taries of the various county election
boards Under such an administration
where two members of the county cleo
tion board are, in fact, selected by the
'Ouilis 'Nhll al NOlIllllIllttS
of the respective parties, and where
the secretaries of such boards are Sc
lected by two members of the state
election board appointed by the COVER
nor, and another member selected by |
the state senate, with such division
Of power and such safeguards and this |
recognition of local government and /
local agencies, we can have real gov.
ernment of the people of this state"
The letter to Mr. Beeler conveyed .
lis formal appointment to the office,
although it had been announced sew
eral days ago this selection would be
made The five names submitted by A.
H. Geissler, state chairman of the re-
party, were as follows: r. A.
Chandler, Vinita Roy NJ. Johnson,
Ardmore; Vernon NJ Whiting, Paw.
luska; f. A. Parkinson, Lawton, and
\. NJ. Webb, Waynoka.
GeissIer's Statement.
Mr. Geiss:er gave out a statement
commenting on the action of governor
Williams in ignoring his nomination.
is part of the statement:
"The governor exhibits his usual
political blindness in trying to make
distinction between his duty and the
uty of the state election board. The
ection of the law which requires the
tate election board to commission as I
he republican member of every coun-
y election board a man selected by
he republican county committee is in
eed mandatory, but the provision
'hich requires the governor to com
Mission as the republican member of !
he state election board one of the five !
Zen whose names are submitted by !
ne republican state committee, is just !
S mandatory. The only difference is ,
nat the courts would promptly grant
writ of mandamus compelling the :
tate election board to obey the law if J
attempted to ignore the wishes of
ny republican county organization,
lille, on the other hand, the supreme
ourt has held that under the peculiar 4
of this state no action of
andamus will lie against the COVER. !
Or in any case. In other words the
1vernor of Oklahoma, if he is so o
inded, is absolutely free to ignore
e law and trample it underfoot.
THE records of the state election
,ard show that, as to the membership
county election boards. the repub-
an state chairman has always recon- a
ended and demanded that in every p
stance a commission be issued, as re- r
Tired by law, to the man named by nj
e respective county organization" T