OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF T‘EXAS
AUBYIN
IIonorab1.e
Lutlxc C. Johaeton
county kttorney
Pale8tlne,Texas
Dear air;
opinion ao. O-4048
Be:. Doe6 the term squalififod.votera
ae useU in the Test8 Liquor Oontrol
Aot mean that a pmf~on muet be
qtitrhd t0 y0t0 b~en.t0 thb O*tit
of havtngpatd aLa poll %a8 Or 8elng
exempt fTealpayingflame;?woN hlr
alunatureon 8 petltfanrequetilai3i
loeat option~elwMon oaa bsmunted
i~0oarputtngtbenumbs~0i qwm0a
voters who hate eignea the psbitionv
Your leeter of September 08, lWl, r~qu#~t$n$gn'
opinion of this Departdmnt on the above ofa+,& queatiloa;
$&ads
88 foii.OW*:
*Art1018 666-32 or the Mm Liquor OontroS Act
provides in p&r I. . . a& .sUOhcourt hall atier
a looal option eleotion whanever pettitlonedto do 80
by OS many aa ten 426) per oent of the qual.iSfedvotera
of eaid oounty. . W*
I)oee the term ~quallfiedvoter* as ueed above
mean thsb a pereon AMI% be quaLi$iedto vata, even to
the extent of !mlng &d his poll tax or bein$ execempt
from pa ing sruae,'o0r0r6 hin si ture on a gbtltion
&auert 9 iq a looal option el.eat
r 011can be oountsB in
oomputlnG t>ionumber ci qtmlfiledvoter6 who have fJi@~d
the-petition?
'It la my opinion that this queeti~n should be
answered in the afflrmtlve# that is, a perso +st
have.either paid hi8 poll.tax or be exengt fr
SCIE~ before he can rai&~a petition oalling $0 x2
option election. Alsersv, Remlngtilui, O&o* App+, 118
.
Honorable Luther C. Johnrton, page 2 ,
9. i-i,(za) 714:I Arti 666-S, Penal 0ode.a
Artiole 6066-32,Vsmon*s Ahnotatad Penal.Code,
providesr
"The oomniaslonors~oourt or enoh dounty in tM,e
State upon its own motion PPayorder an rlsotlan $0 bo
held by the qui%lifledvoter@ in said oounty, to detomina
whether or not tho fialeof liquor8 aholl be &1rohlbj##6 or
lsgallzed in suoh 001&y, an&moh aourt shall orUs l
loool option elsotlon whax~svsrpetitioned to do so by aa
amay a8 to5 0.0) per Q8nt ot’ the qualdfied votie~6 OS raid
county, of anyjustlcs prsoinat, city or town, Lg-
votes ror governor at the last preceding gemeral~’
YSL1ootSs.u
as tha basis r0r atmtii3ing the qualiriedVO~TB in my
cuoh county, or polltioal rubdl~islon. . .!!
Artfole 2954, Vwnon~e Annotatul 0Ml.l Btatutso,
name8 the olasees of persons whopshall sot ba allowed to VOW
in slls LxYAt3. i.rticle2959, Vwxmn*s Annotafctd Clvfl~tetubss,
6fbtsf0tih the quPlfri06itl0nt fw v0ti5g in tafs minta
The OEIIB0r Akere Y. Rti~ton, 116 8. w. (84) 7i4,
JRentiOAIb~ in yOuFletter, ‘zuImgOtbr thiLXSSshold0 %Aa?oQt
that un~az the Liquor Control Aat,the oommlsEl.on~rat sourt of
the oouhty oould adopt my GWW it thought proper to msertain
irthe parsone sl~hiz7ga petition for local option ele*ttioa
wars legal voters of tho oounty and whsthsr or not ten psr 0-t
of t&e quallfledvoters .oftiikoouctyhad s&.nad it al rsqtind
by Art-Sole664-i%, supra. 3a.b ewe rurthsr h&t* Shat under
the above mention& atiiOlo that t3 petition ~hiOkrZnS 8iSo.sd
by pLorethan ten per oat of the qualifiedvoter%, praying for
the oamissloners*.oourt to oalZ a looal option eleOtion wal)
eurrisient notwithstandingthat it falletlto show on its fasr
that the arlgmrs were ~diriea voters or alsotora of th? aouatyl
or corsltitutm?ten per oent of the qualifiedvoter6 ha ths oounty.
Thheword “qualiitad” is defim?+d in i’icmb~ aid FIUmJbl,
paraanent.edition,Yol. 36, pa 660, as follows?
*;lualiried
is synonyaouswith *ausoeptible~oapablei
00rPpetentq
rittin63 posesraing legal povmr or eapaoity."
noaorable Luther 0. Sohnetoa, me ?I
On page 589 ln the a msntloned ~olunioof
&+rds and 3%m306, KB fin% the foll:‘ing
%: definition Of a lgal$-
fled elector:
"A qaalified9leOtOI'Viithin Cixo local option law
. provldin~ for getltlon for 5 looal option eleotlon
io'be clsnod by one-third 02 t;he'quallfled eleotore of
the cougty, 68 shown by the poll llet or return8 and
oanvaeQ2f the last generaL eleotloz, 1s one who puets the
reqL;iz;e;?entaof Conmt., Artlole 7;Seotion lIW (Rutlad@
v. Board of Suprr. of hlarp\utte $kmnty, 100 Uloh. 2.2)
On pcqya600 of the above mentioned volume of ,$@dr
aud Phrneea we find the followingdetlnltlon of the ta.lll'&ali-
iied rot.erP:
W:~uallfledvote& within the looal optloa~lanpzp
rldlng that a looal option &M&ion ahall be slgrud by
*qualliiedvotere~ who are qualified to vote ior members
of th6 leglelature,ace thobo penonrr who h6vo the ~nUi-
floatlone epeoifisd by the Bonetltutlonand by Aev. St.,
1899, sea. t39%4,. . . there being no speolal quallfioa-
tlon for persons entitled to vote for m&era of the
lsglelature." (99 8. lf.269)
Anothw deiFoition lto~ndin Vioti6end ?bra80# 16
(raiioll0~3 :
*A qualified voter is Ueflned in I~evieed'tatutss,
1899, . . . to be one who under the general lawa t t t&a
State would be allowed to vote in any oounty ror State
8Ad cousltyoftlc4rs and who hna meided in the diotrfct
thirty &aye prsoedlng ttm sohool disttriotmeotlng in
?;hiahhe offers to vote."
"A qualifiedvoter ie one who by law fs ontit1.d
to.vote st an election, 'Whoreeleotora are
required to
register, an elector who falls to eo register is not a
~umllfled voter althou& he possessesother qualltloat~one."
We think that the tern *qualifiedvetarv as wed
in ;I&lole 660-32, supra, means tioae who are qualified to Vote,
un6sr the Constitution and statute6of this Xuta, and w&O ase
pu@ifie% to vote in the looal option elootion whioh IS to be
Oe]iled by remon of the said petitlo& 'die respeotfullyaaiswbrthe
eb,(ivestated q+.WStiGn Zn the arfimatlve.
Emwrable Luther C. Sohaeton, pw 4
Trusting that the for8go51~3fully answer8 your
lnquiq, we are
FIRST ASSISTAHT
ATTORNEY GENERAL b.rdeli%k'lllfam
hnaiataat