The Bitter Election Dispute
After the municipal election, the city council held formal proceedings to address a contest regarding the validity of the treasurer’s election, ultimately upholding W. B. Mack.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
On convening last Thursday night, counsel on both sides addressed the council upon the nature of their findings, and the members then retired to N. W. Bush's office to consider their verdict. The council found that no malconduct of office occurred, no illegal votes were cast, the contestee, Mack, was eligible, and the canvass of the election was correct. Mr. Cochran then put in a bill of exceptions to each and every finding of the council—to their having retired to deliberate in secret and to the presence of the city attorney thereat, and to every decision or finding of the council upon law or fact during the trial of the contest.
“Mr. Cochran then put in a bill of exceptions to each and every finding of the council.”
Election contests and allegations of administrative impropriety are foundational to civic life. The procedural struggle documented here shows that even in a small frontier town, the legitimacy of power was fiercely negotiated through legalistic channels.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.