XELECTIONS

XELECTIONS

Laws concerning the holding of elections have grown much more stringent in the last few years. Every detail of the casting of a ballot is now prescribed by law and every precaution taken to insure honesty of elections. The precautions apply more to cities than to rural communities, with the result that more corruption may sometimes be found to-day in country elections than in those in cities.

Registration of Voters: In large places or densely populated districts it is impossible for the election officials to know every voter, therefore the law requires that in cities and villages of over five thousand inhabitants every voter shall appear every year before the board of registration and have his name put on the registration list. He is required to answer certain questions as to his age, his exact residence, his business, and where hislast vote was cast, and to sign his own name for purposes of identification and to prevent fraud.

In smaller places and in rural districts, the signature is not required, and after a man’s name is once registered it remains on the book as long as the voter remains in the district. In practice it remains on the book until some one takes it off; and the names of men who have died or moved away are frequently found in a rural registration book.

Time of Elections: The general elections take place in the fall, on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. National elections for President and Vice-President take place every four years, in the year that ends with the figure four or its multiple. Elections for representatives to Congress and State elections are held the same day every two years, in the even-numbered years. City elections are held the same day in the odd-numbered years. City elections are held separate from State elections in order to keep National and State issues from intruding in the election of municipal officers. Local elections usually take place the same day, with the exception of the spring village election and town meeting.

The Election District: For convenience every county or city is divided into election districts, each with one polling-place. The average number of voters to an election district in New York State is from two hundred and fifty to four hundred. When a district grows to five hundred voters it is usually divided. In Chicago, since women were given the vote, an election district contains from five to six hundred voters. It has been found that the women vote at the hours when men are busy, and that the same election officials can handle many more votes than is customary in New York.

Election Officers: Boards of elections, appointed by the county board of supervisors, are in general charge of the elections in the county, and there is a State Superintendent of Elections appointed by the Governor. At each polling-place on Election Day there is an election board consisting of four election inspectors, two ballot clerks, and two poll clerks. The law provides that election boards and boards of registration shall consist of equal representatives from the two political parties that cast the highest number of votes at the last election. This does not apply to town and village elections. Each party also is allowed two watchers.A railing shuts in the voting-booths and tables, and no one but the election board and the official watchers is allowed under the law to be inside this railing.

The polls are open from six o’clock in the morning until five o’clock in the afternoon. Before voting begins the ballot-boxes are opened and inspected to see that they are empty. The official watchers have a right to see everything that is done. Electioneering is forbidden within one hundred feet of the polls. The voting-booths are constructed so as to insure privacy while the voter is marking his ballot, and the ballot is folded so that no one but the voter himself knows how he has voted.

The Election: When the voter appears to cast his ballot, he gives his name and address, and the registration book is consulted to see that he is registered, the number of the ballot given to him is called out by the ballot clerk, and his name and the number of his ballot are entered in the poll-book.

Official ballots are provided for every polling-place, twice as many as there are registered voters in the district.

All the candidates for one office are grouped together on the ballot, each name with ablank square beside it. To vote for a candidate the voter must make a cross with a lead-pencil (not ink) inside of the box beside the name of the candidate:X in box. If the cross extends beyond the box, or if the word “yes” is written, if the ballot is erased or in any way defaced, it will be thrown out at the count as void. If a voter spoils a ballot he should ask for another one. An illiterate person is allowed assistance in marking his ballot.

When the voter comes out of the booth, where he has marked his ballot in secret and folded it so it cannot be read, he gives the ballot to an election official, who announces the name of the voter and the number of his ballot, tears off the stub, and drops the ballot unopened into the box. A person’s vote may be challenged by an inspector or watcher, or at the written request of any voter. If, under oath, he is questioned and swears that he is eligible, his vote is recorded, but is marked challenged.

The Count: At five o’clock the polls are closed and the ballots are counted. They must not be handled by any one but the election officials, although the watchers may see every ballot and watch the count. The count for each office to be filled is madeseparately, and if there are many candidates it may take many hours to complete the count and know the result. Official tally sheets are provided. The result is filed with the County Clerk. The board of supervisors meet as a board of canvassers to canvass the result, and the returns are sent to the State board of canvassers.

The Australian Ballotis the only one used in New York State elections. It has on one ballot the names of all candidates of all parties for all the offices to be voted for. The names are grouped by offices, and the first name in each group is the candidate of the party that cast the largest vote at the last election. The only ballots shown before Election Day are sample ballots printed on pink paper, while the ballots used at the election are white. They are all numbered, and every one must be accounted for.

Until recently the ballot was printed with a column for each party, so that the easiest thing the voter could do was to put a cross within a circle at the head of the column, and thus vote for every candidate of that party—what is called a “straight ticket.” The ballot used at present requires a separate cross for every separate candidate, and so encourages independence and intelligence onthe part of the voter. There are blank places so the voter may write in any name he wishes for any office.

Short Ballot: It is evident from the brief outline of the structure of government contained in the earlier chapters, that there are a great many officers to be elected. It is impossible for even the most intelligent and most interested voter to know the merits of as many candidates as often appear on one ballot. In some elections ballots are used which can be measured only in feet, and sometimes even in yards. To remedy this evil there is a strong movement toward ashort ballot. This would mean cutting down the number of elective offices.

The tendency of government to-day is to concentrate the responsibility on one man or a few men, to let them make appointments, and to hold them accountable for results.

Corrupt Practices Act: The cost of campaigns and elections to the political parties and to many candidates is great. While there are many legitimate expenses connected with an election, the uncontrolled use of large funds leads to grave corruption and has brought about careful regulation by the State of money used at election-time. Contributions from corporations are prohibited.

A public statement of campaign funds must be made by every candidate and every organization taking part in a campaign, of all money received for campaign purposes and how it has been expended. This statement must be filed with the Secretary of State within twenty days after the election, and be open to public inspection. Even these precautions, while more severe than those found in most States, have not succeeded in putting an end to the corrupt use of money in elections.

It has been proposed recently that an addition to the Corrupt Practices Act should be made to require all candidates and campaign managers to file, five daysbeforeelection, instead of twenty daysafter, a list of receipts and expenditures, so that voters might know before the election the sources of political contributions and the use to which the money is put.

A second proposal has been made in regard to the personnel of the election officers, that instead of these boards being party appointees they should be appointed from the civil service lists. It is argued that with civil service appointees handling the count of ballots there would be less likelihood of mistakes or deliberate fraud.

Oregon has adopted the plan of having a pamphlet printed by the State for both the primaries and the elections, in which is set forth the claims of candidates of all parties, and both sides of all public questions to be voted on. This pamphlet is sent at public expense to every voter in that State.

Voting-machinesare expensive, but they do away with the necessity for voting-booths, and require fewer election officials. Perhaps that is one reason they have not been more popular. They register the number of votes cast for each candidate, and the result of the election is known as soon as the polls are closed, and does not have to await the long, tedious, and often incorrect count by hand.

The Use of School-housesand other public buildings for registration- and polling-places is growing more common. It not only saves the large rent usually charged for the use of other buildings for polling-places, but it also gives more room and more convenient surroundings than are afforded by the kind of place often rented for use on Election Day. Unless provision is made by a city charter or some special permission school-houses may be used in this way only by a vote of the people of the district.

The Cost of Electionsin proportion toother expenses of government is small. In the budget for New York City it figures less than 1 per cent. of the total budget. At the same time it could undoubtedly be lowered by economy. High rent is paid for polling-places, double the number of ballots necessary and liberal supplies are given to each district. It was found in Chicago, when women became voters, that the cost of elections was increased very little. The supplies furnished, and the same number of election officials, were found to be able to care for a large increase in the number of voters.


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