Evening star., 1924-07-06
gesse Platform Urges Radical Government System of
Many Legal Tangles
In La FOIIette's Pat1,
State Regulations Vary Considerably
Number of Petitioners Required for
Nomination Differ in Localities.

Robert NJ. La Toilette. independent
candidate for President of these So
called free and equal United States,
has taken the first step along the
road that leads in the general direc-
ton of the White House, but which
sometimes branches off to a wilder
ness where weeping, wailing and
gnashing of teeth make a sad welkin
ring. He has taken the first step by
allowing himself to be indorsed by a
duly constituted and consecrated con-
vention of his fellow citizens. But before
his name can be placed upon the ballots
of forty-eight states for the approval
or disapproval of 100,000,000 or so
Americans on next election day, Sen
ator La Toilette and his cohorts must
do a deal of hustling and bustling to
comply with the varied state laws
concerning those who would take
upon their shoulders the hazardous
and arduous duties of a presidential
candidate.
Simon Michelet, Washington at
torney. has compiled briefly and neat
ly a digest of the various state laws
concerning requirements for the plac-
ing of presidential electors on the
ballot. The list of laws shows an en-
tirely different attitude on the part OF
the various states. Some of them
are exceedingly hard-boiled about the
whole proposition, while others show
John Doe, were he SO inclined. to set
up for himself in the middle of the
public highways a soap box, stand
thereon, proclaim himself candidate
and proceed to corral the votes. The
number of these votes would depend,
of course, upon the strength of the
candidates voice and the height and
strategic location of his soap box.
Thousands Must Petition.
A study of Mr.. Michelet's compila-
tion of state votes, hurried trip to
an adding machine and the total of
list of figures that resembles Mr.
Jack Dempsey's income tax developes
the lrst and probably the most in
teresting fact that about 64,515.01
citizens, a large number of whom
must not have voted in the prmar-
les. must affix their signatures to
various papers declaring in effect,
that I'VE Want La Toilette" and have
them certified by notarieS public and
Nj :.
Hughes, some time between now and
next November. The number of the
signatures to petitions declaring the
voice of the people demands La Fol-
lette varies in the different states
For instance, in eight of the states
the number of petitioners must be
at least l per cent of the total
number of voters in the last election
for governor. In New York, where
the laws frown on candidates not
friendly to Al Smith. there must be
at least $4,000 petitioners, and there
cannot be less than fifty in each
county. North Carolina requires IL
per cent of the partisan state
vote in the last election. Virgins
requires only that there be a written
notice of the candidacy attested by
two witnesses who have paid their poll
| taxes. South Carolina never gave
the matter enough attention or
thought to pass any laws on the sub
ject, Florida requires twenty-five
voters from each county, while Mis-
sissippi only requires fifty qualified
voters to sign petition and file it with
the election commissioners fifteen
days before the election.
Many Restrictions Seen.
The laws above described have only
to do with the filing of the nomina-
tion papers in the states. The re-
strictions which are placed upon those
who file these papers are interesting
In eighteen out Of the forty-eight
states the petitioners must not have
voted in the primaries. How much
of a drawback this will be to Mr.
La Toilette is questionable. The pri-
mary vote includes a rather small
percentage of the total number OF
state voters. The attitude of the
average state voter is to let George
do the primary voting. while he waits
for the big show on election night
So Mr.. La Toilette may have an easy
time as far as this is concerned.