408
BIENNIAL REPORT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
ELECTION LAWS-DUTY OF SUPERVISORS OF REGISTRATION.
July 16, 1928.
Gentlemen:
In yiew of the importance of the General Eiection to be held on N 0­
6, 1928, and the fact that irregularities in the conduct and holding
of the election may lead to litigation and controversy, also because of the
fact that this being a presidential year and there being a United States
senator as well as four congressmen to be elected that snch irregularities,
if any, might occasion a Federal conh'oversy in the event the· result of the
election in any district should be close enough to warrant a contest, permit
ule to call your attention to some of the .-ital provisions of the election laws,
and. to request your co-operation in seeing that these provisions are car­
ded out.
The chief responsibility for holding the election devolves priinarily upon
the Supervisor of Registration, who is required to ·work ·in conjunction with
the County Commissioners. It is physically impossible for the Snpervisor·
of Registration, among all the other thing's he is required to do, to do all
the law requires of him in, this connection without clerical assistance. In
additiun to this, Supervisors of Hegistration are, perhaps, the poorest paid
of all other county offcials, and their compensation will not warrant the
employment of extra help to be paid out of the meager sum they receive
for their services. The most essential thing at this time is the proper
preparation of the registration books for the General Election.
Section 236, Hevised General Statutes, provides that no person whose
name does not appear upon the registration books shall be allowed to vote,
except upon production of a restoration certificate in the eyent his name
is improperly omitted.
Section 308,' Hevised General Statutes, and other sections and special
laws, provide that while all persons who haveregister~d for the Primary
Election are to be deemed duly registered for the General Election, yet not­
withstanding this fact, their names "shall be carried upon the registra­
tion books as electors duly registered for such election." .This language
clearly requires that all pames be transferred· from· the· Primary Election
bool;:s to the General Election books unless the same names are alrelldy upon
the General Election books.
There is no authority for· the use of the Primary Election books as
registration books for the General Election.
Owing to the heavy registration in the recent primary, the work of
transferring these names to the General Election books will be enormous,
and unless the same is accomplished the date of the General Electon may
arrive and many Democratic electors left ineligible to vote because their·
names do not appear upon· the registration books. In many cases it will
be impQssible for them to procure the restoration· certificate required by
Section 236,· because in many instances such electors will discover for the
first time at the polls that their names are not upon the General Election
books.
In order to enable theSupervisots of Registration to comply with the
law, and in order to insure that each voter who voted in the last Pri­
mary Election will be allowed the right. to vote in the General Election, I
am writing this letter to suggest that the Board of County Commissioners
v~mber
BIENNIAL REPORT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
409
of the several counties of this State co-operate with the Supervisors of
Registration in furnishing &uch clericnl assistance as will enable the super~
visors to carry ont their part of the work as required by the law. For this
purpose, it is my suggestion that the Board of County Commissioners use
any surplus of the fund whi.ch may be in their hands from qualification feeH
paid in by candidates at the last primary to carry, on the 'work of trans­
ferring primary registrants. to the General Election books, as this is pri-,
madly chargeable to expenses of holding the primary; as I construe the law.
I would also snggest that particnlar attention be paid by Supervisor:;:
of Registration toward compliance with Section 227, Revised General Statutes.
by giving the printed ilotice therein mentioned. Also the provisions i'elating
to appointment of and giving notice by district registration officers, as well
as the provisions of Section 244, Revised General Statutes, relating to ex­
amination and revision of the registration books by the County Commissioners.
I would also invite your attention to Section 238, Revised General
Statutes, wherein it provides for new registration books where the old
registration books are in such a condition that new ones are necessary.
In' many instances it will be found that the most CQuvenient way to
handle the subject of registration for the approaching General Election is
to prepare new registration books under Section 238,' and in such new books
carry forward only those voters who are lrnown to be still in the" county
and entitled to yote at the coming General Election, eliminating the names
of all persons who have moved away and '''ho have' died since the last
General Election.
'
As I have stated above, the matter is 01 particular importance at fhA,.'!
time, owing to the fact that Federal as well as State officers are to be
.elected, and in the event of controversy the question of compliance with
the State laws may get into the Federal courts, or before one of the Houses
of Congress, in the event the election of any of our presidential electors.
senators or congressmen should be challenged.
Very respectfully,
Jj"RED H.DAVIS, .Attorney General.
PARTY
Dear Sir:
AFFILIATION~MANNER OJj~
APPLYING FOR APPLICAr.rION
FOR CHANGING
August 2, 1928.
Change of party affiliation is governed by Section 309, Reyised General
Statutes of Florida.
All this section requires is that application be made in writing at least
GO days before the date of any general primary. The law is silent as to
whether or not application shall be made in person or sent in by mail, and 1
find' nothing in the section which would prohibit you from accepting sueh
applications when mailed in provided that you are convinced that they are
signed by the identical elector by whom they purport to \1e Signed.
Very truly yours,
FRED H. DAVIS, Attorney General.
Dear Sir:
REGISTRATION BOOKS-PREPAHAT'ION
August 14, 1928.
Answering your letter of August 10th, I beg to advise that the law
i,
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