Elections

( Originally Published 1883 )

Elections.—Elections are held at specified times, under the direction of officers designated by law, for the purpose of choosing State, district, county, township, city, and village officers. The purity of the ballot-box is essential to the maintenance of free institutions, and the State, recognizing this fact, has made provision for a full and free expression of the will of the people, described minutely the duties and powers of those having charge of elections, enacted laws to preserve the purity of elections, and affixed severe penalties for their violation.

Officers Elected.—The various officers elected in the State, district, county, township, city, and village, may be classified as follows :—

1. State executive officers;

2. Members of the State Legislature and Representatives in Congress;

3. Judges of the Supreme and Circuit Courts;

4. County officers ;

5. Township and city officers;

6. Village officers.

Time of Election.—The law provides for three regular elections

1. A general election in November ;

2. An April election ;

3. A March election.

These elections are sometimes designated as the fall and spring elections.

Special elections to fill vacancies may be held at other times.

General Election.—The general election occurs on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of every even year. At this time are elected,

1. State executive officers ;

2. Members of the State Legislature and Representatives in Congress ;

3. County officers.

These officers are elected for two years, with the exception of the Probate Judge, who elected for four years.

It would not be possible to select a certain date, as, for example, the twelfth of November, for the reason that Sunday sometimes comes on that day.

2. At the same time that the above officers are elected, a member of the State Board of Education is also elected.

April Election.—This election occurs every year, on the first Monday in April. At this time are elected,

1. Judges of the Supreme and Circuit Courts;

2. Township and city officers.

Judges of the Supreme Court are elected for eight years, one being elected every two years; Judges of the Circuit Court, for six years; township and city officers, for one year, except Justices of the Peace, elected for four years, and Drain Commissioner, for two.

1. In Detroit, city officers are elected on the first Monday in Novem ber of every odd year.

2. Two Regents of the University are elected every two years at the April election.

March Election.—On the second Monday in March of each year usually occurs the election of village officers. The term of office of village and city officers is the same.

Qualified Voters.—No person is allowed to vote until he is twenty-one years of age. Every voter must be a citizen of the United States, and must have resided in the State three months and in the township or ward ten days preceding the election. Male citizens having these qualifications are said to be qualified voters.

Any person engaging in a duel, either as principal or accessory, is disqualified, by the Constitution of the State, from holding office or from voting at any election.

Special Privileges of Voters.—Voters, while going to and returning from the polls, are privileged from arrest, except for treason, or a crime punishable by death or imprisonment, or the violation of the public peace. On election days, they are also exempt from military duty, except in time of war or public danger, and they are not obliged to attend court as suitors or witnesses.

Certain Limitations.—Paupers,. insane persons, and idiots are not allowed to vote, since they are dependent upon others for their support and protection, and are not capable of acting for themselves. They occupy about the same relation to the State that persons under-age do. Criminals forfeit the right of suffrage during their imprisonment.

Boards.—Certain Boards are designated by law to superintend the registration of voters, and to receive and canvass the votes cast for the various officers. These are,-

1. Boards of Registration,

2. Inspectors of Election,

3. County Canvassers,

4. District Canvassers,

5. State Canvassers.

The Boards of Registration prepare lists of all legal voters; the Inspectors of Election receive votes and prepare statements of the result ; the County Canvassers decide what county officers are elected ; District Canvassers determine the result in the representative and senatorial districts ; the State Canvassers decide what State officers are elected.

Registration.—Every voter is required by law to have his name properly registered in the election district in which he resides, before he is permitted to vote. Previous to an election, the proper officers meet to record the names of all qualified voters who present themselves for registration.

In townships and villages, the time designated by law for registration is the Saturday before an election; in cities, the Saturday before a general election and the day before a charter election, and on such other days, not to exceed three, as the Common Council may appoint. Public notice is always given of the time when persons may register.

Boards of Registration.—In the cities, the Board of Registration consists of the Aldermen, two of whom sit in each ward ; in villages, two Trustees appointed each year by the Village Council, and the Clerk ; in townships, the Supervisor, Treasurer, and Clerk. These Boards meet at the appointed time to record additional names and to correct the registration lists. These lists are afterwards delivered to the Inspectors of Election, and they permit only those to vote whose names appear in the lists. In this way, illegal voting is rendered difficult, and the delay that would otherwise be occasioned on election day, in ascertaining the qualifications of voters, is avoided,

A person may be registered on election day by the Inspectors, and allowed to vote, on declaring, under oath, that he is a legal voter, and that sickness, or absence from town on business, prevented him from registering on the regular day.

Inspectors of Election.—In each township, the Supervisor, the Justice of the Peace whose term of office first expires, and the Clerk, constitute the Board of Inspectors; in each ward, the Supervisor and the two Aldermen; in a village, the President, one Trustee, and the Clerk, or three Trustees. The Supervisor is chairman of the Board of Inspectors in a township or ward. In a village, the President is chairman of the Board.

Provision is made by law for the division of a township or village into two or more election districts.

Duties of the Board.—The Inspectors of Election receive the ballots of those who are legally qualified to vote, and deposit them in a ballot-box prepared for that purpose. Each ballot is delivered folded to one of the Inspectors, in the presence of the Board. No ballot can be opened by an Inspector until the close of the polls. The Board have full power to maintain order, and they may commit to the county jail, for a period of not to exceed twenty days, any person guilty of disturbance. The Inspectors of Election see to it that the voting is peaceably and properly done.

1. The polls are opened at eight o'clock in the morning, and are .closed at five in the afternoon.

2. Poll is a Saxon word meaning the head. It afterwards came to mean a register of heads, and finally a place where an election is held. Ballot is a French word meaning a little ball. Balls of different color were sometimes used in voting, one color signifying the affirmative, the other the negative. The word now means a written or printed ticket used in Voting.

3. The Inspectors, or any voter, may challenge the qualifications of any person desiring to vote, and unless the challenge is withdrawn, the voter is obliged to take an oath that he is qualified to vote.

Clerks.—The Township Clerk acts as clerk of the Township Board of Inspectors, together with some other person selected by the Board ; in the ward, the Supervisor and the two Aldermen select two clerks. To each of the clerks is given a cornplete list of all legal voters, as determined by the Board of Registration, and as the name of each person presenting his vote is called by one of the Inspectors, the clerks consult the registration lists to see whether the name appears there.

Counting the Votes.—When the polls are closed, the Inspectors proceed to count the votes, while the clerks keep a record of the number of votes cast for each candidate. If the election is a township election, the Inspectors determine who is elected, and publicly declare the result. If, however, State, county, or district officers are to be elected, a statement of the number of votes given for each person voted for, is prepared and sent to the County and District Canvassers.

1. The votes for city officers are canvassed by the Common Council.

2. In addition to the statement sent to the County and District Boards of Canvassers, a similar statement is preserved by the Clerk of the township or city to guard against accident or fraud.

3. If when counting the ballots, two are found folded together, both are destroyed. If the ballots are found to exceed the number of registered voters, they are replaced in the box, and one of the Inspectors publicly draws out and destroys enough ballots unopened to equal the number in excess. The counting of votes must always be public.

County Canvassers.—As there is a local Board in each township to decide what township officers are elected, so it is also necessary that there should be a Board in each county to determine what county officers are elected. The Inspectors of each election district select one of their number to serve, on the County Board of Canvassers. To the Inspector thus selected is intrusted the statement prepared by the Board of Inspectors, to be by him delivered to the County Clerk, who is the secretary of the County Canvassers.

The County Canvassers meet on the Tuesday following the general election, and on the second Tuesday succeeding the April election.

Duties of the Board.—The several Inspectors appointed to attend the county canvass constitute the County Board of Canvassers. They select one of their number as chairman, the County Clerk being secretary. They then examine the statements sent by the Boards of Inspectors, and ascertain the number of votes given within the county for State and county officers. They determine what county officers are elected, and prepare statements of the number of votes received by each candidate for a State office. One of these statements is sent to the Secretary of State.

1. The County Canvassers also canvass the votes given for Judges of the Circuit Courts and Representatives in Congress, and they send statements of the result to the State Board of Canvassers.

2. In addition to the statement sent to the Secretary of State, statements are also sent to the Governor and State Treasurer, so as to guard against accident or fraud.

3. When two candidates for a county office, or a seat in the Legislature, receive an equal number of votes, they draw lots for the office, in the presence of the County Clerk. If, however, the office is that of County Clerk, the drawing takes place before the Sheriff.

District Canvassers.—When a county is divided into two or more senatorial or representative districts, the Inspectors of Election representing the townships and wards in each district, together with the County Clerk or his deputy, constitute the Board of District Canvassers. They meet soon after the county canvass, and determine who are elected in their respective districts.

1. When the county constitutes one senatorial or representative district, the County Board of Canvassers decide who is elected.

2. When a senatorial or representative district is greater than the limits of a single county, there is a Board of Canvassers composed of the Clerks of the several counties within the district, together with the Judge of Probate, and the Sheriff of the county, in which the meeting of the Board is held.

State Canvassers.—The Secretary of State, the State Treasurer, and the Commissioner of the Land Office, constitute the State Board of Canvassers. They examine the statements sent to them by the County Canvassers, and determine what State officers are elected.1

. In addition to canvassing the votes for State officers, the State Canvassers determine who is elected in each congressional and judicial district.

2. If after the votes are canvassed by the Board of State Canvassers, two candidates for any office have received an equal number of votes, the Legislature, in joint session, choose one of them to fill the office. If the determination of the State Canvassers is contested, the Legislature decide what person is elected.

1. The General election occurs on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of every even year; the April election, on the first Monday in April of each year; the March election, on the second Monday in March of each year.

2. Probate Judges are elected every four years, commencing with the year 1852; one Judge of the Supreme Court and two Regents of the University, every two years, commencing with the year 1858; Judges of the Circuit Courts, every six years, commencing with the year 1851.

1. In elections, the persons receiving the greatest number of votes are declared elected.