Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-02-28
WEST VIRGINIA IN
STEP TO HELP WAY
OF COUNTING VOTES

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greatest obstacles to the prompt an
nouncement of election results, such
as handicapped the newspapers in
the last presidential election, may be
removed before another presidential
year, are reflected in the action of the
West Virginia legislature, following
the example set by Kansas, in the Gre
alton of what is called "A Double Ell
eCtiOn Board"
The measure is hailed by West Vir-
einia newspapers as one that will De
appreciated by the general public to a
greater extent than is realized by
those not familiar with the present en-
cumbrances which surround ballot
counting. They declare that the sue
cess of the experiment in Kansas last
fall should attract attention in other
states as a. possible relief from such
uncertainty as the whole country lab
ored under for several days after the
last election.
Kansas. considering its difference in
time as compared with the Eastern
states, was the first of all states to
begin to return figures on its election
last November 7th This was a sur
prise generally to other states until it
was discovered that the secret OF
Kansas promptness was a system
known as the Double Election Board.
This system does not in any sense
revolutionize present methods of vot-
ing, but simply makes it possible that
the ballots may be counted almost sim E
ultaneously with the casting of them,
with the result that the vote is known
Immediately onup the closing Of the
polls.
The Kansas law provides that at all
general elections the national and state
tickets shall be printed upon one bal
lot, and the district, county and town
ship tickets shall be printed upon an
other ballot, and that at each voting
precinct five separate ballot boxes
shall be provided, two in duplicate for
the national and state ballots, and
that there shall be two boards of cleo
ton officers, one to be known as the
receiving board the receive ballots and
guard their proper placement in the
boxes-and the other to be counting
board.
Counting and Voting Simultaneous
A few hours after the opening of the
polls the national and state ballot
boxes are removed from their desig-
mated places, and duplicate boxes plac
ed in their stead, while the counting
board retires under proper safeguards,
empties the first set of boxes ana
counts the ballots. After another in
terval the boxes are exchanged again
and the counting proceeded with in
this manner of a simple relay through
out the day.
The old method, which still obtains
in all the states except Kansas and
West Virginia, requires the casting OF
the ballot before any counting is done.
and this involves in some places from
six to forty-eight hours, delaying
still greater time the compilation of a
state or national vote.
The act of the West Virginia legis-
lature in following the Kansas example
is called the Wier bill, after James w.
Wier, newspaper man who is mem
Der of the West Virginia legislature
and who deemed that some of the cler-
zeal and mechanical handicaps OF cleo
ton reporting belonged to the days
when folks depended upon the stage
coach mail for their news, instead OF
tie present era of the telephone and
wireless telegraph. In West Virginia,
for example, at the last election it was
a week before it was known positively
how the state had gone, and it was six
weeks before the exact figures were
compiled and published
What little opposition was met with
in West Virginia in suggesting adop-
ton of the Kansas methods to the eff
feet that the double election board in
volved additional expense, but in the
argument of the author of the bill, it is
as inexpensive to work two sets of men
one day as it is to work one set of men
for two days.
Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and
several of the Middle and Western
states have for many years been par
t!cularly slow in completing their re-
turns, and it is such conditions thai
have handicapped The Associated
Press in announcing the definite re-
suits of presidential elections on the
night of election day. The seriousness
of such delays as were encountered
! last November, when various newspa-