Evening star., 1944-03-01
|Conferees Limit
II. ). Vote Forms
ToMen n0verseas
New Restriction Put
In Bill at Meeting
To Iron Out Details
BY ]. A. O'LEARY.


The agreement reached for
limited use of a Federal ballot
by Servicemen was reopened by
the conferees today and further
restricted by applying it only to
overseas voting.
Senator Hatch, Democrat, of New
Mexico said when the conferees ad-
Journed last night it was believed
the agreement, making use of the
Federal ballot subject to approval
by the State Governors, applied to
servicemen at home or abroad
When the conference was resumed
this morning to iron out details OF
the service voting bill, House con-
ferees were understood to have an
nounced they thought the agree
ment related only to voting out
side the United States, and the Sem
ate members again yielded to this
Interpretation.
Called "BObtaiI Ballot"
Representative Rankin, Democrat,
OF Mississippi, champion of States
rights, still proclaimed his opposition
to what he calls a Federal bobtail"
ballot" but all the other conferees
have agreed to submit to the Senate
and House on this basis of settle
ment:
Servicemen who take an oath that
they applied for regular State bal
lot and had not received it by Oc-
tobr l would be given the short Fed
eral voting form. provided the Gov
ernors of their States certified be-
fore August l that the Federal ballot
is acceptable under the laws of their
States.
Federal Ballot Restriction.
Servicemen whose States do not
have an absentee voting law also
could use the Federal ballot only If
the Governors certified before Au-
gust that it would be accepted.
Since nearly all of the States
either have made provision for alb
sentee voting, or plan to, the CON-
promise means that no Federal ball
lots could be used until after Oc-
tober l, and then only by those vino
swear they sought and did not OBJ
tain a regular ballot
Even in the use of the Federal ball
lot overseas by persons whose Gov
ernors accept it, the conferees added
another requirement today, namely:
That in order to swear on October
l that he did not receive a State
ballot and wants a Federal voting
form the service man or woman must
show that the State ballot was ap-
piled for by September l.
Action by State Legislatures is not
required to sanction the Federal
ballot, but it is possible some Gov
ernors may put the issue up to their
lawmaking groups rather than as
sumo the responsibility for author
iZing its use.
The compromise still has three
hurdles to clear. 1t must be voted
| on by the House and Senate, then
go to the President, who called the
original State ballot bill fraud"
This provision is not acceptable
to me, because it would attempt to
impose a Federal bob-tail ballot on
soldiers from States that have
absentee voting laws for members
of the armed forces" Mr.. Rankin
said.
Senate Acted Before Holidays.
Il doubt very much whether it is
entirely acceptable to any one of
u.s. observed Senator Green, Demo-
crat, of Rhode Island, who joined
Senator Lucas, Democrat, of Illinois
in fathering the Federal ballot plan.
Originally, the Green-Lucas bill
would have authorized the mass dis
tribution of the short, Federal vot-
ing to all members of the armed
forces and merchant marine. re-
gardless of whether they had tried
to get State ballot.
Before Christmas the Senate
turned down all reference to a Fed
eral ballot and approved the East
land-Rankin State ballot plan.
After the holidays, the House passed
the Eastland-Rankin bill, then the
Senate reconsidered and added that
measure to limited form of Fed
eral ballot For the last two weeks
lit appeared the conferees were
hopelessly deadlocked They finally
got together on the idea of leaving
use of the Federal ballot up to the
Governors.
The proposed Federal ballot is a
small, blank form, on which the
serviceman or woman would write
his choice for President, Senator
and Representative. Names of can
didates would not be printed on the
ballot, and voting by party label
would not be permitted. The regu-
ular State ballots usually contain all
candidates names and cover State
| and local, as well as national tickets.
The october l deadline, which
must pass before a serviceman who
has applied for a State ballot could
ask for the Federal ballot, precludes
use of the Federal voting form in
primaries, and in the Southern
States the primaries are decisive.
The conference agreement leaves
intact the provisions Of the 1912
soldier-voting law, waving poll tax