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Delegate White, could you tell us about
the status of the people in Ocean City?
I mean by that, are they very unhappy with
the situation as it now stands?
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate White.
DELEGATE WHITE: I believe that
when the Honorable Clarence Mitchell of
the Washington Branch of N.A.A.C.P. ap-
peared before us he responded to this same
question by indicating that silence or the
lack of protest on the part of citizens is
no indication of their happiness. Some
people are very unhappy but they are
afraid to protest.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Murray, do you have another
question?
DELEGATE D. MURRAY: I will not
take more than my question. I am sorry
Delegate White answered what I believe
was Mr. Mitchell's answer. I asked for Mr.
Williams' answer, please.
DELEGATE WHITE: I cannot argue
against my position. I rely on the opposi-
tion to do that.
(Laughter.)
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
The Chair recognizes Delegate Della.
DELEGATE DELLA: Delegate White,
I believe you mentioned Laurel and Fed-
eralsburg. The Mayor of Laurel came be-
fore you and objected to non-residents vot-
ing. Do non-residents vote in Laurel?
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate White.
DELEGATE WHITE: I do not know
that. I do not think so. They have the right
to do that, but I am not aware whether
they have extended that right.
DELEGATE DELLA: In other words,
the municipalities govern themselves and
they refuse to have non-residents vote
there.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate White.
DELEGATE WHITE: Apparently they
have not extended that right.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Della.
DELEGATE DELLA: Does that not
also apply to Federalsburg?
DELEGATE WHITE: I have a list but
what is the impact of your question?
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DELEGATE DELLA: I believe you said
the counsel for Federalsburg was against
granting to non-residents the right to vote.
DELEGATE WHITE: I do not see that
this has any relevance. We are here writ-
ing a constitution for the State of Mary-
land. To some of us, I hope the great ma-
jority of us, extending the right to vote on
the basis of economic considerations is re-
pugnant to the concept of voting rights
based solely on people and not on property.
A mayor of any town whether or not he
has non-residents exercising the right of
ballot, still has the right to express an
opinion which would affect his municipality,
which may be considering the extension of
such a right, and the position taken by
such a representative might impel such a
locality not to extend this right to non-
residents, as has been done by some mu-
nicipalities.
DELEGATE J. CLARK (presiding) :
Delegate Della.
DELEGATE DELLA: Delegate White,
did you have before your Committee the
Mayor of Ocean City?
DELEGATE WHITE: We had a repre-
sentative from Ocean City.
DELEGATE DELLA: Did he object to
giving non-residents the right to vote?
DELEGATE WHITE: He did advocate
that they should continue that.
DELEGATE DELLA: In other words,
what you are trying to do is to deny those
people the right to have their form of gov-
ernment as they would like to have it?
DELEGATE WHITE: What I am trying
to do is to have all of Maryland line up
with the position of the Supreme Court of
the United States, which has said that one
person should have one vote.
For example, in the reapportionment fight,
this fight has gone on and on. In doing
some reading, I discovered that in some in-
stances a county that had ten or fifteen
thousand citizens sent the same number of
delegates to Annapolis to the General As-
sembly as a neighboring county that had
90,000 people. In other words, if you have
two delegates from a district which repre-
sents 10,000 people and two from a district
which represents 90,000 people, the first
delegates can outvote me on any question
and my vote is thereby diluted. This, as I
recall, was the position held by the Su-
preme Court that the representative who
is sent to a lawmaking body by 90,000
people certainly should carry more weight
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