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offices, but in 1802 all property qualifica-
tions were eliminated from the state con-
stitutions.
However, many municipalities still re-
quire property qualifications as a require-
ment for holding office, and a small num-
ber still require that in order to vote one
has to be a property owner.
The Committee felt that this archaic
provision should be eliminated. They
strongly recommend that this Committee
adopt that provision.
We felt that there was no longer any
reasonable or theoretical justification to this
archaic and undemocratic process and that
it should be eliminated both as a require-
ment for voting and as a requirement for
holding office.
(Vice-President James Clark assumed
tJtc Chair.)
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding):
The Chair would like to make it clear that
the questions directed to Delegate Ross at
this time would refer only to section 1.
Are there any questions?
There being no questions, Delegate Ross,
Delegate Rybczynski, you have the minority
report. Will you come forward?
Delegate Byrnes.
DELEGATE BYRNES: I have one ques-
tion in regard to section 1. Actually, I
have a series of questions that deal with
the applicability of all these sections to
the various levels of government. I wonder
if we might make an exception to the rule
of considering these questions seriatim.
DELEGATE J. CLARR (presiding):
Do you mind yielding-?
DELEGATE ROSS: Would you raise
them as we consider each one ? I do not
want to repeat; that was the attempt
made in varying the presentation.
DELEGATE BYRNES: If I may, 1 will
just ask the first one. We all know the titles
have no legal significance. Can we say for
the record that there is no question that
that section refers to federal, state, and
county elections ?
DELEGATE ROSS: I am glad to tell
you, Delegate Byrnes, that there is no ques-
tion in my mind.
DELEGATE J. CLARR (presiding):
Delegate Rybczynski, come forward, please,
sir.
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As I understand, your report is just on
the voting age.
Delegate Scanlan.
DELEGATE SCANLAN: May I sug-gest
the absence of a quorum, sir? He has an
important report to present and I think
we ought to have a full house, even if I
am going to vote against him.
DELEGATE J. CLARR (presiding):
Will the Clerk ring the bell, please?
All delegates please take their seats and
answer the quorum call.
Have all delegates answered the quorum
call ?
The Clerk will record the call.
A quorum being present, this session of
the Committee of the Whole will continue.
The Chair recognizes Delegate Rybczynski
to present Minority Report S&E-2.
DELEGATE RYBCZYNSKI: Mr. Chair-
man, Madam Chairman of our Suffrage
and Elections Committee, and fellow dele-
g-ates, we want you to know on this ques-
tion of 21 versus IS, 1(5, 19, and 20, that
by no means did the Committee fully agree
until about a day and a half of balloting-.
Now, if you will look at your proposals,
you will find that there was a proposal for
the age of 1(5, and in our Committee that
received two votes. Then in the first ballot-
ing-, there was no solid majority on any
age. The only age that stuck together was
21. It was the same on the first ballot
and it is the same today.
If you will look at our minority report
you will find it starts with seven names.
These are the seven names as appeared on
the very first day of balloting-. The other
eig-ht members — the vote was eight to seven
— were scattered all over the field from 1(5
to 20. So that I need not tell you, what
eventually happened was that there was
a compromise among the various minorities
that eventually became the majority.
Now, I cannot resist at this time in-
forming you of a very important event
which has been occurring around here for
the last day or so. The very same people
who screamed so loudly last week about
undue pressures being applied in voting
have been scoring you, not me by any
means, but you. Now, let us get this
straight. I am not including my Madam
Chairman by any means. I do not think
she has even been aware of this going on;
but I have been aware. I sit in the back
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