Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-05-25
NOMINATION OF GRIMES
LEGAL, Says COMMITTEE
statement Addressed to Jefferson
Ward Voters Defends Action
of City Body.
NO OTHER COURSE OPEN
Held That Five Candidates With
Highest Number of Votes Werc
Declared Nominees Following e..
II. Lumsden'S Death. a

| In defense of it's action in naming
John r. Grimes as the nominee of the
! party for the City Council from Jcffer-
| son ward. the City Democratic Com
mittee last night issued a statement,
| signed by Secretary Walter G. Duke.
| and addressed to the voters Of Jeffcr-
| son Ward asserting that the commit
tee made no nomination whatsoever.
hut simply declared the i've men then
| living. who had received the highest
votes IN the primary. the Nominees Of
tho party.
George II. Lumsdcr. one of tho five
men who had been named in the pri-
mary by the voters of jefferson Ward
to represent them in the City Coun-
ell. had died before the commit
tee met TO certify the returns sent in
I by the Board OF Election Commissions
crS. and there was nothing else for
tho committee to do. says the state
ment, but to name the man who came
sixth on the ballot in n field OF ten
candidates.
quested by the committee to read it's
statement carefully. and to see to II
that the regular nominees Of the party
are given united support. Captain j
/. Bailey is opposing John r. Grimes,
who succeeds Mr.. Lumsden as the
regular Democratic nominee.
NAMES AUGUST AS
DATE FOR PRIMARY
The committee, at the same meeting
sci August J, the date on which the
congressional primary will be held, as
the date for the primary to nominate
candidate for the Administrative
Board. Graham g. Hobson, who has
been elected to fill out the unex,,rnd
term OF Robert Whittet. is the only
aNowed candidnte in the race
Inc committees statement, in part
reads: h' -
AS there appears to be some mis-
apprehension upon the part of som. q,
the voters of Jefferson Ward in ra,r,rd
10 the action of the City Democratic
committee In declaring John II. Grimes
one OF the hVe candidates nominated
In the Democratic primary held on
lueSoa!' April 4, II seems necessary TO
state the facts in regard thereto IN
order that no Democrat may tbrn,,on
iack OF knowledge OF the facts hn IoJ
10 cast ms vote in opposition 10 tho
regularly nominated Democratic can
d!datcS. '"
The primary election law of the
state provides that the results nj 10
election shall be certified by tho ind,,aa
oi election to the Board of Ei.ctior
commissioners, to whom the Official
e'uiHs pailots, ETC., are delivered the
uay after the election. While the
o.! oinmittee. out of its own treas
urE and for the satisfaction of ,ho
public, arranges to have thn -,
oi Ihe election forwarded to them On
we night of the election. these re
turns are in no sense Official rba
BOARD OIL Election Commissioners. altar
meeting ana canvassing the returns
certihes the results TO the chair,na
OF the city committee. This cer,it,na,n
was received by the chairman ON Mon.
Jay april 10, and the committee w,s
immediately called for meeting On
"eonesoay' April IL. At this meet
ing the certificate of the Board n,
Election Commissioners was read an,
the five candidates then livin~ 49, CIV.
declared the nominees of III. Dcn,o
cratic party for Councilmeu in lar
tcrson Ward at the ensuing ranar.,
election. George II. Lumsden one or
.ne SUCCESSFUL candidates. having died
prior TO the receipt of the otticial "a
turns from the Board of E.Icction ro,,,
i''sS'ohefs--namely, on Saturday. April
NO NOMINATIoNs ARE
MADE BY COMMITTEES,
Inc committee made no nominations
nha's "eFer but declared the five men
then living, who had received the bi,,b-
est votes in the primary, the nomi-
eeS VI the party, and in so doing ONLY
cohhrmed the will OF the majority or
those voting in the primary J,ba Cow,
mittee did not sit in judgment az 10
me qualification or fitness of am of
inc unsuccessful candidates who ran
IA me primary and in no sense did
~ u"uertake TO make any selection
from their number. Mr. Grimes h,d
oeen chosen by the voters of Jcrf.r
son ward as the sixth man i'm n daId
W 'e" candidates, and one of the sue
ccSSlul candidates having died nrio,.
|" me ohicial declaration OF the re-
SUIT Oh the election. he necessarily be-
came one Of the five upon whom tho
n lnffa
rested This being SO. he is as much
inc nominee of the party in its pri
mary election. held for the purpose of
making nominations in order to pre
SEM united from, TO opposing can
dlda'cs In general election, as arc
Messrs. Mills. Powers. Sullivan and
1eter. His claim upon the loyalty
ana support Of every voter who mar
ticipated in the primary is Just as
strong.
Even il tho death of Mr.. Lumsden
had occurred subsequent TO his hay
ing been declared by the committee as
one OF the nominees. the committee
would have had the undoubted right
and 1t would have been its duty. under
me election laws of the State, to have
named inc candidate for the vacancy
created thereby. The election laws
also provide that in case of tie vote
the choice of candidat. shall be de-
termined by lot. In such case there
not being n clear choice as the result
or the election, the selection of the
nth nominee would he madc-not from
among the field OF defeated candidates
In the primary. nor yet naming an en-
Iirely new man. but as between the
two next successful candidates.
IF the claim is made that. rather
than select the next successful cam
didate, the voters be given in another
primary An opportunity to express
their preference, while not probable.
1t is possible that some such occur-
renee as a vote or the death of n sue
cessful candidate might again give rise
10 cry for another election. and 80
on ad ininitum ad absurdum.
PLEA is MADE FOR
HARMONY IN PARTY
I'm oil fairness. even were it possi.
BILE and thought advisable to hold an
other primary. it should without doub,
be strictly limited to those who filed
their names as candidates In the first
primary. No one who was not cam
didate In the first primary shouid he