Delaware General Assembly

CHAPTER 35

OF THE GENERAL ELECTION.

AN ACT concerning the appointment of Registration Officers and the preparation and delivery of Registration Books.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Delaware in General Assembly met:

SECTION 1. The Governor shall, sometime in the month of June in each year in which a general election is held, appoint in each election district in this State outside of the City Wilmington, three capable persons who shall be voters and , resident in the Election District for which they shall be appointed, who shall be the registration officers of the Election District for which they are appointed ; one of whom shall be designated as " Registrar," and the other two " Assistant Registrars," and not more than two of them shall be of the same political faith ; provided, that the number of registration officers in each Representative District, shall be divided as equally as possible between the two leading political parties, as the same shall be determined upon by the Governor at the time of making the appointments. For each appointment accredited to any political party under this section the County Executive Committee of such political party shall furnish the Governor on or before the , first day of June of the year in which said appointment is to be made a list of three names of properly qualified persons, from which lists the Governor shall make his appointments. Provided, however, that if the said lists of names are not furnished as aforesaid then and in that event the Governor shall appoint some suitable person or persons of such political party having all the qualifications provided by this section.

Provided however, that in the case of the Registration officers to be appointed in this present year eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, the appointment of the said Registration officers shall be made sometime between Saturday, the eleventh day of June, and Saturday, the twenty-fifth day of June in said year ; and provided further, that the lists of names to be furnished by the County Executive Committees from which the appointments of such Registration officers shall be made, with regard to those to be appointed in the year aforesaid shall be furnished not later that Saturday, the eleventh day of June in the year aforesaid. The terms of office of such Registration officers shall begin on the first Tuesday in July next after their appointment, and shall continue for two years thereafter, and until their successors shall be duly chosen and qualified.

I. It shall be the duty of the Governor, when appointing Registration officers for the several election districts of this State, at the same time to appoint in each 'election district in the State, outside of the City of Wilmington, one capable person, who shall be a voter and resident in the election district for which he shall be appointed, to be " Alternate Registrar" for the said election district. The term of office of said " Alternate Registrar " shall be the same as that of the Registrar, and whenever the Registrar provided for by this Act shall be incapable from any cause whatsoever of performing the duties required of him by the laws of this State, the "Alternate Registrar " in the same election district shall act in his stead, and while acting shall possess all the powers and do and perform all the duties of a Registrar.

II. But nothing herein contained shall authorize or empower the Alternate Registrar to act at any time when there is a Registrar of the election district able and willing and present to act. If any Registration officer or Alternate Registrar shall remove from the election district for which he shall be appointed, or shall cease to be a voter therein, his office , thereupon become vacant.

III. If any vacancy or vacancies should occur in the office of Registrar, Assistant Registrar, or Alternate Registrar before the expiration of such term, for any cause whatsoever, the Governor shall appoint some suitable person or persons to fill such vacancy or vacancies, who shall serve for the residue of such unexpired term or terms, who shall possess the same qualifications and be qualified in the same manner, possess the same powers and perform the same duties as the original appointee or appointees. Each Registrar, Assistant Registrar and Alternate Registrar before entering upon the duties of his office, shall take and subscribe before the Clerk of the Peace of the County in which he shall reside the following oath or affirmation which the said Clerk of the Peace is hereby authorized to administer:

"I, ………………………….., residing in …………………………..Election District of ……….……., Representative District in………………………………County, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the State of Delaware, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of Registrar (or Assistant Registrar or Alternate Registrar) for …………….. Election District in…………………………………., Representative District in…………………County, faithfully, honestly, fairly, impartially and according to the best of my ability ; that i am a citizen of the United States, and of the State of Delaware, and I am not a candidate for any office to be voted for by the electors of the election district for which I am appointed Registrar (Assistant Registrar or Alternate Registrar) and that I inn a qualified voter in said election district."

IV. Should the said Registrar, Assistant Registrar or , either of them or Alternate Registrar after taking said oath and before entering upon the active duties of said office become a candidate for any office to be voted for by the electors of the election district for which he is appointed Registrar, Assistant Registrar or Alternate Registrar, the said office shall ipso facto become vacant and be filled by the appointment of another person to the same. After any Registrar, Assistant Registrar or Alternate Registrar shall have entered upon the active to duties of his office he shall thereby become ineligible to any office to be voted for at the next ensuing general election.

SECTION 2. Each and every person appointed as aforesaid to act as Registrar, Assistant Registrar or Alternate Registrar shall qualify.as such Registrar, assistant registrar or alternate registrar by taking or subscribing the oath or affirmation prescribed in the preceding section, within ten clays after being notified of his appointment, and shall perform the duties of the office for the term for which he was appointed, unless he shall become disqualified by sickness or otherwise ; but any Registrar, Assistant Registrar or Alternate Registrar who shall be appointed to fill a vacancy shall qualify forthwith.

If any Registrar, assistant registrar or alternate registrar who, being appointed either for a full term or to fill a vacancy, shall refuse to qualify as aforesaid, or, haying qualified, shall fail or refuse to perform any of the duties of said office, he shall forfeit and pay to the State a fine of one hundred dollars, upon conviction thereof by indictment in the Court of General Sessions of the county where such offence was committed.

The registration officers aforesaid during the time they hold such office shall be exempt from the performance of military and jury duty, and no person who by the laws of this State is exempt from jury duty shall he required to serve as a registration officer.

SECTION 3. It shall he the duty of the Governor to cause the following books to he prepared, at the expense of the State for the use of the said registration officers in each election district in this State, including those in the City of Wilmington for the registration of names and facts following, to wit:

I. Two books for the registration officers in each election district, including those in the City of Wilmington, to be known by the general name of " Registers," and to be so arranged as to admit of the convenient entry of the following particulars:

First. The name of the person applying to he registered, written in full (or his first Christian name, and also any other name by which he is generally known, written in full, with the initial or initials of ally other name or names which he may have in addition thereto).

Second. Whether his resignation fee is paid or unpaid

Third. His color

Fourth. His age.

Fifth. The place of birth.

Sixth. The place of his residence, of street and number, if any, and his post-office address.

Seventh. The time of his residence in the State, county and election district in which he shall apply to be registered.

Eighth. If naturalized.

Ninth. If registered voter.

Tenth. If disqualified

Eleventh. Date of application for registration.

Twelfth. If challenged.

Thirteenth. Cause of challenge.

Fourteenth. Appeal.

Fifteenth. Remarks, explanatory and supplementary.

II. Such registers shall be uniform in their general character, shall be ruled in parallel columns, and shall be of such size as to contain not less than fifteen hundred names.

III. The ruling and the heading in the above described registers shall be substantially in the form following, to wit :

Name,

Registration Fee,

Color,

Age,

Nativity,

Residence,

State, Term

County, of

Election District, Residence

Naturalized,

Registered Voter,

Disqualified,

Date of Application,

If Challenged,

Cause of Challenge,

Appeal,

Remarks,

Second, Two books for the registration officers of each election district, to be known by the name of "Books of Registered Voters," of alphabetical lists of all persons whose names may be entered on the register aforesaid as "registered voters." Said books to be ruled in parallel columns and so arranged as to admit of the convenient entry in alphabetical order of the name of every person who may be entered on the registers aforesaid as a "Registered Voter," and in the parallel column opposite the name of such person the following particulars, to wit:

First. His residence.

Second. His color.

Third. His age, if it be between the age of twenty-one and twenty-two years on the day of the next general election.

Fourth. A book to be known as "Registration Certificates," to contain not less than fifteen hundred blanks and printed in manner and form as hereinafter provided.

SECTION 4. The Sheriff of each county shall, some time previous to the last Saturday in the month of July, in the year of holding the general election, deliver to the registrar of each election district of his county, two of the books known as "Registers," two of the books known as "Books of Registered Voters," and a book of registration certificates hereinbefore provided for; which said books addressed to the registrar of each election district of the county; the Governor shall cause to be delivered to the sheriff in each of the counties of this State on or before the third Tuesday in July in the y ear of holding the general election.

SECTION 5. Each of the said registrars immediately upon receiving said "Registers," "Books of Registered Voters" and book of "Registration Certificates" shall endorse upon the back and write at the head of each "Register"," "Book of Registered Voters" and "Registration Certificates," delivered to him as aforesaid, the name of the county and the name of the election district of such county of which he is a registrar and of which such books shall respectively be the "Registers," "Books of Registered Voters" and book of "Registration Certificates" as aforesaid.

SECTION 6. All acts and parts of acts supplied by or inconsistent with this act are hereby repealed.

Approved May 20, A.D. 1898.