Department of Public Instruction. DISTRICT SCHOOL ELECTIONS. The Annual District Elections for electing School Trustees, will be held on the last Saturday (29th day) of June. The question has been submitted to the Department of Instruction, as to whether the coming school elections should be conducted in accordance with sections 35, 36, 38 and 39 of the Revised School Law, or should be governed by the "Registry Act." It is the opinion of the State Superintendent, which opinion is sustained by some of the ablest lawyers in the State, that the school elections are not subject to the provisions of the "Registry Act;" but that they must be held as heretofore, under the simpler provisions of the Revised School Law. The Registry Act was passed March 19th, 1866; the Revised School Law was passed March 24th, five days after the former Act, and it provides, (Sec. 122) that "all Acts and parts of Acts, whether general or special, so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are hereby repealed." If, therefore, there be any provisions relating to elections, in the "Registry Act," inconsistent with the provisions of sections 35, 36, 38 and 39 of the Revised School Law, the latter Act must be held to govern. Are any of the provisions of the two Acts "inconsistent," and if so, what are they? Under the Registry Act, the Board of Supervisors of the County are required to establish "election districts" and "election precincts," and to appoint election officers. These election districts and precincts have been established without any reference to the boundaries of school districts. Now, in each election " precinct," in many cases, there are four, or five, or more school districts, and the school elections are to be held in those several school districts on the same day; how is it "practicable or possible for one board of election. officers to hold four, or five, or more elections on the same day, in four, or five, or more places; or how is it practicable for the citizens of these several school districts to travel five or ten miles, vote at one election precinct and elect four, or five, or more sets of School Trustees? Again, as the boundaries of the general election precincts have not been established with any reference to school district boundaries, which are subject to constant changes to suit the convenience of the people, one portion of a school district will be found in one election precinct, and the other part in another precinct. It is evident, that whether or not the Registry Act was intended to be applied to School Elections, no provision whatever was made for such application. The Revised School Law (Sec. 35) provides, that the "Trustees shall appoint the Inspector and Judges of Election," and that the election in each school district" shall be held at the school-house;" thus making each school district an election precinct, for the purposes of school elections. Can there be any doubt that on these points the Registry Act is inconsistent with the Revised School Law, and that the latter Act governs? The next question which arises, is, who are qualified to vote at school elections, and what test shall be applied in challenging? Section third of the Revised School Law, reads as follows: All elections shall be held by ballot; and the Trustees shall have power to determine the hours during which the ballot box shall be kept open, having given due notice thereof in the posted notice of election. Every elector legally qualified to vote at any general election, having been a resident of the school district thirty days next previous to the time of such district election, shall be entitled to vote. Any person offering to vote may be challenged by any legally qualified elector of the district, and the Judge of Election shall thereon administer to the person challenged an oath, in substance as follows: "You do swear [or affirm] that you are a citizen of the United States; that you are twenty-one years of age, according to the best of your information and belief; that you have resided in this State six months next preceding this election, and in this school district thirty days, and that you have not before voted this day. On the thirty-first of March, seven days subsequent to the passage "An Act-sup of the Revised School Law, the Legislature passed Section 4 of this Act reads as follows: Whenever any person presents himself at the polls and offers to vote at any election authorized by law, the Clerk of Election, or one of the Judges, shall pronounce his name in an audible voice, so that it may be distinctly heard by the other Judges and the Clerks present; and if his name be found enrolled on the Poll List, and if his vote be not rejected or objection made and proofs taken for one or more of the causes prescribed in section 29 of the Registry Act, shall receive his ballot, and in the presence of the other Judges put the same, without being opened or examined, into the ballot box. Does this section repeal the provisions of section 35 of the Reyised School Law? The repealing section of this Act of March thirty-first specifies certain Acts to be repealed, among which the Revised School Law is not included. It contains no general repealing clause of all Acts in conflict with it. This Act evidently was not intended to apply to the school elections, otherwise it would have repealed by special mention the Revised School Law. The election officers referred to in section 4 are the regular election officers appointed by the Supervisors for conducting general elections, and not the special officers of school elections appointed by trustees. It would be impossible for the officers of school elections to make out poll lists on the 29th of June, for they are not authorized to act as Boards of Registration, and the poll lists of the general election at that time will be either incomplete or not in existence at all. The State Superintendent is of the opinion that this Amendatory Act of March thirty-first was not intended to apply to the school elections, and therefore does not supersede the provisions of section 35 of the Revised School Law. The Registry Act evidently contains no provisions applicable to school elections. At the time the State Superintendent was engaged in revising the School Law, the Registry Act had not been passed. On reaching the sections relating to school elections, he called a meeting of the Senate Committee on Education, and asked for instructions, calling their attention to the Registry Act. The Committee were of the opinion that the Registry Act could not well be made applicable to school elections, and instructed the Superintendent to incorporate the election provisions of the old School Law. It is evident to those who are conversant with school elections in country districts that it is wholly unnecessary to apply to them the entire machinery of the general election laws. There are nine hundred school districts in the State, and the school elections have always been held without any expense whatever. Not one-tenth of the qualified voters in those districts ever turn out at school elections for trustees. Generally in the rural districts, five or ten citizens meet at the school-house, persuade some one of their number to accept the office, and go through the form of casting their ballots. Is it either desirable, or necessary, that for such a purpose the whole machinery of a general election should be put into operation? Even under the simple and easy manner of holding elections provided in the School Law, in at least half the districts in the State no election is held, the people preferring to allow the County Superintendent to appoint. Hedge about these school meetings with the provisions of the General Election Law, and not a single school election would be held in the State. In most of the other States, the school elections, or meetings, are held as distinct in their character from all other elections. For instance, in Kansas women are allowed to vote at school elections, and to hold the office of School Trustee. In several of the Western States the right of voting at school elections is limited to property owners and tax payers. These school meetings, though called under the general name of “elections," are not held to be "elections" in a constitutional sense. In the coming school elections to be held on the 29th of June, the State Superintendent is of the opinion that trustees will be guided by the specific provisions of sections 35, 36, 38 and 39 of the Revised School Law. Those sections are as follows: SEC. 35. An annual school meeting for the election of School Trustees shall be held in each district on the last Saturday in June of each year, at the district school house, if there be one, and if there be none, at a place to be designated by the Board of Trustees. The Trustees shall post written or printed notices thereof, specifying the day, time, and place of meeting, in at least three public places in the district, one of which shall be the school-house, at least five days previous to the time of meeting. If the Trustees fail to give notice thereof, as required, then any citizen of the district may give it; but no such meeting shall be illegal for want of due notice. All elections shall be held by ballot; and the Trustees shall have power to determine the hours during which the ballot box shall be kept open, having given due notice thereof in the posted notice of election. Every elector legally qualified to vote at any general election, having been a resident of the school district thirty days next previous to the time of such district election, shall be entitled to vote. Any person offering to vote may be challenged by any legally qualified elector of the district, and the Judge of Election shall thereon administer to the person challenged an oath in substance as follows: "You do swear [or affirm] that you are a citizen of the United States; that you are twenty-one years of age, according to the best of your information and belief; that you have resided in this State six months next preceding this election, and in this school district thirty days, and that you have not before voted this day." If he shall refuse to take the oath, his vote shall be rejected; and any person guilty of illegally voting shall be punished as provided in the general election law of this State. The Trustees shall appoint the Inspector and Judges of Election; and in case none are so appointed, or if they are not present at the time for opening the polls, then the electors present may appoint the officers of election. A poll and tally list shall be kept, which shall be returned to the Clerk of the Board of Trustees; and with the exceptions mentioned in this section, the election shall be conducted, as far as practicable, in the form and manner of the general election. Any one of the old Trustees shall have power to administer to any Trustee elect the oath of office; and the Clerk of the Election shall issue his certificate of election to any Trustee elect, who shall forward it, with the oath attached or indorsed thereon, to the County Superintendent of Public Schools. SEC. 36. In all organized districts in which elections have been previously held, one Trustee shall be elected for the term of three years, and if there are vacancies to be filled, a sufficient number to fill them for the unexpired terms; and the ballots shall specify the respective terms for which each Trustee is to be elected. In new districts, acting under Trustees appointed by the County Superintendent, three Trustees shall be elected, for one, two, and three years respectively. Trustees elect shall take office on the first Saturday in July next after their election, and shall hold office until their successors are elected and qualified, or appointed by the County Superintendent and qualified. The term of office of any Trustee whose term would otherwise expire in September of any year, shall expire on the first Saturday in July of the same year. Any Trustee elect who shall fail to qualify within ten days after the term of office commences shall forfeit all right to the office, and the County Superintendent shall appoint to fill the vacancy. SEC. 38. No district school meeting, annual or special, shall be organized before nine o'clock A. M., or closed before 12 o'clock м., or kept open less than one hour; and in all districts in which the number of children between five and fifteen years of age equals or exceeds three hundred, the polls shall be kept open from eight o'clock A.M., until sunset. |