84 Ga. 630 | Ga. | 1890
It appears from the record in this case that an election was held under the charter of the city of Albany for mayor and aldermen, on the first Monday in December, 1889. The qualifications for voters at that election are prescribed by the charter. Acts 1872, p. 123. These qualifications are as follows: “All persons shall be qualified to vote at elections for mayor and aldermen in the city of Albany who are citizens of the United States, have resided in this State for one year immediately preceding the election, and' continue to do so up to the time of election, and within the corporate limits of said city for one month immediately preceding the day for the opening of the registration list, and the month intervening from said opening to the day of election continuously, who have attained the age of twenty-one years, and who have paid all taxes assessed against them by the ordinances of said city, and which they have had an opportunity of paying; who shall have made all returns required by the ordinances, and
It appears from the record that in pursuance of this act, a registration list was opened on the first Monday in October, and closed on the first Monday in November, and that 419 persons registered. The election for mayor and aldermen was held on the first Monday in December thereafter. On the 4th day of December, 1889, the mayor and aldermen ordered an election to be hold on the 6th of January, 1890, to ascertain whether two thirds of the qualified voters of said city desired $50,000 of bonds to be issued by the city for the purpose of erecting a system of public water-works. The election on this issue was held at the time appointed, and when the votes were consolidated, it appeared that 251 votes were cast for the bonds, and that 99 votes were cast for no bonds. It further appears that, prior to and on the day of this election, the mayor and aldermen instructed the managers of the election to receive the vote of no person unless he had registered as a voter in October of ■the preceding year. It also appears that a great number of persons oflered to vote, and that their votes were refused by the managers, and that a great many others desired to vote but did not attend the polls, on account of the instructions of the mayor and aldermen to the managers not to receive any votes except from persons who had registered for the preceding election. After
1. We think that, under the facts disclosed by the record, the judge erred in refusing to grant the injunction prayed for. In our opinion, the act of 1872 (supra), requiring a registration of voters, does not apply to special elections of the character now under considera
2. But it is claimed by the able counsel for the defendants in error that, although the act may be silent as to the registration for elections other than those for mayor and aldermen, the general law of the State as to elections by municipalities to determine whether bonds shall be issued, provides that such elections shall be held “by the same persons and in the same manner, under the same rules and regulations, that elec
Applying these principles to the facts of this case, let us see whether the regulations for registration for this special election were reasonable and impartial, and calculated to facilitate the right of suffrage, and not to unnecessarily restrain, impair or impede it. The registration upon which this special election was held was opened on the first Monday in October, for the purpose of ascertaining the qualified voters in the city of Albany who were entitled to vote for mayor and aldermen in the December following, and was closed on the first Monday in November. The law authorizing this registration required that before any person could register, he must have been a resident of the city for one month immediately preceding the day for the opening of the registration list, and the month intervening from said opening to the day of election continuously. So it will be seen that under this regulation, no person could register or vote who did not reside in the city of Albany on the first Monday iu September, 1889, and no person could register after the first Monday in November, 1889. There were at least two months from the closing of the
We hold, therefore, that the act requiring the registration of voters in the city of Albany applies only to elections for mayor and aldermen; and the question of the issue of these bonds not having been submitted to all the qualified voters of the city, the election was illegal and void. And we think that, to apply the general law in the code to this election, the mayor and aldermen should either have ordered a new registration and given all the qualified voters a reasonable opportunity to qualify themselves as electors, or else should have allowed all the qualified voters to vote without registration. Judgment reversed.