Eonoreble San-en HoDonald
County kttorn4y
%l&th CQuntP
Tyler, Texea
ODiai4u No. 0-2688
Dear 3rz Rii lYleC&nty D4mooratlo Exsoutfre
Cormittee may pay aupervlaore of a
primary elsotion, appointed under ani
by virtue of hrtiol4 3104, Revised
Civil Ftatntes of Texae.
Your opinion re-questof August 27th,addrosaed to
Uersli%C. Wnn, Attornay Osnerel of Texas, haa b0en r4i4rrsd
to the writer ror oousidoration and reply. You clakwh4thet
the f4os of muprriser~ oi on eleotiorr ohorsn br the oandldatae
should be paid by the oandidates rx the County &4outlv4 &imt~
mitt*0 l We quote the follti~ four psrsgrsphs tram ~o'omr
14tterr
"unA4r Art%414 29U, HovLseQ Oivti Statute
mm j&!uan one~fittkof the ~.aandldateo whes8 rmxms
‘bp&tr&i ‘iipciti’~tho
orriolal bellot In the el4otion
hsld last Saturday agreed upon two sap6rviuors tar
aaoh votlne box in %nith County. In sceordan44
with thla egr44mnt, the au~rviaars a4 a4144t4d
served 8s 414otion cbffioialans per mqu4et in said
agr44ment.
'There ere three srtioles of the BevIsed Civil
Etetuto providing for the srpolntmnt ot~supc+mia~a
of ~sleatlons. The first artiols 2941, provides that
the chair-n of the count 4xeoutive oomitt4e x4y,
upon request five daya pr for to any general oleotlon,
appoint one supervixm tar each voting preoinot la
the oounty. There is no proviaitxain thet statute
dIrecti&; thrttthe candidates shell pay said super-
viaore. Thhceeoond article, to wit, 2942, makes th4
provision that any one-f:fth of the canadatee whoae
namea trpp4sron the otfloial ballot, eto., aray
agr463upon two supervisora. As aiareaafd, it was
under this article of the 6l;atutasl ow super-
viscro were appointed. There la no provision in
eafd article of the statutes plaoing the burden
of the paying of said supervisor6 upon the one-
fifth or more of the oandidatee raquestinp, them.
RThe ttlrd article oi'the statute, to wit,
29428, providing for the selection of the super-
visors upon the petition of forty or more of the
qualified voters of a preoinot OF ward does provide
that the ones requesting the appointment of supsr-
visors shall stsnd ths expense of said supsrvisora ’
serving 011 el~sotlon0rfi04r4.
“1 do not iind any 4~48 dealing with the
paymnt of appointad supervisors by the oountg
ohairmn or supervisors agr4sd upon. It 00ours
to m thst irmsmuoh 49 the lsst srtiole quoted
speoIfI4ally proyid4s th,atthe on48 r4quostIag
the appointment ai supenlsms shall pay for 8wlsl)
would oertainlg place that burden upon th4 OMS
V&O asked ror the appointment of aupervIsoxa.
The rirst two artiolas do not so pruvid4, and It
Is my opinln su4h sup4rviaors so appelnt4d under
the firat two artl014s quoted should b4 p4Id 48&
or th4 funds eubsorlhd by all oendidat4a for
elsstlon to d4fray eleotion 4speaa4s.~ .
W4 aasute4~that th4 aup4rviaors lpgolnbed a4 sleotlcm
0rriof4is war4 app4intod Uenam Artlcrle 3104, lppWag to prl-
msry ekotlons, -teed of Artiolwt 2941, 29&? atN2%2a, R4-
ri8d civil Stetuim, 88 rorrmd to in y00ur Istiter. xt ia
apparent that Artial44 29&l, 2942 and 29&Za apply only to
@gal azzdapeelal 4144ti4lia*nd not to p4rty pr%narf,~144-
25?@ ia Sn gua aa foUorst
,, ,n.rt.&ol+,
"!&e 4haIrmn 0r the oaanty exeoutivs (IQ&-
mittae, for aauh
psrtypol.itiodl
thet has oadi-
det4a on th4 0frioial bal&t, 0r ir b4 rail.4 t0
est, cay three lnembarsor euah oormaitt44,ml,
not lestt than rir0 days him4 the getter81 4144-
tion (I’
,*..*
Ala4, Art1014 2943, Revlaed OlvIl St4tutes, apply-
ing o&y to
g4n4r81 end speoial elaetions and not party prl-
eli80ti&, reads 3.npert a8 r0ii4ws;
Vadgss end olerks of g4rmral and apealal
ol4otIons ahall be paid .. .. by the county #sa-
a lr 4 r *. l* n
Mow, Title 50, entltlsd Vl4otloa4,'~ ooixtalnaArtioles
2923 through 3173, inolu4lr4, of the Revised Civil Statutes of
Texas. Chsagtm 13 of +d Title 50, entitled "IWmlnstlons,"
oontsining &tiole 3100 throu& krtiole 3167, pertsins to party
pritaary4140~1ons. Salt3Art3414 3100 is a8 r0u09fe:
,- “‘I%4 term *primary eleotion' as us4d In tbio
ohaptsr, means 4n eleotlon bald by the embers 4S
an orce;aniz4d~polltiosl party r0r the purpose of
ncmlnati~ the atutMiidUt8 of suoh erty to be voted
for at 4 general or speoial eleotf on, or to ri6mLE-
ate the 4ouaty exroutivs offloers of e pertp.**
p.cm.Warren Me-3ouald,Page 3
Further, Artiole 3104 of said Chepter 13, referring
to the eleatlon offloera of a primary elsotlon is aa follow5t
WAll the preoinat primary elsotiorurof % party
shall be oonductsd by a prealding judge, to be ap-
pointed by a ohairman of the oounty exeautive oocl-
titter OS the party, with the %sllIstame and epprovnl
Qr at leant n majority of the slembersof the oounty ,
cxeoutive commIttee. Push presiding judge e&all
oelect aa aamoiete jueqe %na two clerks to assist
In oonduatln~ the election. TWO supervisors may be
ahoaen by sny one-fourth of the party candidates, who,
with the juagee ena elsrks shell take the oath re-
quired of suoh offIoer% In general eleations. !P%o
addItIona alsrks m%g be appointed but only when In
the opinion of the pretlibi?l~ juQe, there will be
more than one huudrsd votes ollad at the primary
eleotion in the preojnot." PUndersoaring ours)
Thus ArtI 3104 spplyIng 8peoiflcally to 9leotIon
offloers In prImerg el%atIaas must govern the eppointment of
the auperviame related in yous request.
prooeedlng turther in 86&l ohepter 13, Artiolr 3108,
Hevi8ed Civil Statutes of Texas, with refarenoe to the 'a*
pensa ef aonduat,Ing8 prwry eleatloa, contains the follm-
Lner ,
*'Atthe rmetI.ngof the aounty executive cm-
nittee prorId%d In Artlale 3117, the oounty OCQ-
raitteeshall ale0 aarefully estlmt8 the ooet ctf
printing the offIoIa1 ballota, renting polling
plaoea where same may be found neoesnary, prwfd-
Ing an8 distributing all necerrsarypoll books,
blank statlonerp and voting booth5 required, eom-
perinetlonor sleatlon offlaers~ana 0Lerks and
measengera, to report the result In enah $reolnot
to the oounty oheIrm%n, 8~ provided ror herein,
and 611 other neaeastiryexpana%s of holdlag nuoh
prImarIes In suoh aountle,eend shall apportion
euoh oost among the rarloua oenaIdat%e for nor~Ina-
tion ror county and preclnot olYIoem only 88 here-
in defined, end offlaea to be filled by the voters
of suoh county or preainot only (oandidates for
Rate offloes exospted), In auoh manner a8 in
their judgment la just and equitable, Bfrlng due
oonsideration to the importfmoe and omolumenta of
eaah such offlae for *hIoh a nomlnetlon is to be
made and shell by resolution, direct the ohelrppsnto
IMedIately mail to eeoh person whose n%me has bean
requested to be plsoed on the offIoIa1 bellot a
statement of the mount of. augh exponser~ SO eppor-
tioned to him, with the request that he pay t'ha
aeme to the oounty chslrman on or before the Eatur-
day before the rourth~uonday in June thereeftor."
,-
Hon. Warren MoOon%ld, Pag% 4
!&hesuthority 0s the oounty e%eoutioe 0ommSttee is
lj.mlteU by the statute8 oontetmd in 8OId Cheptsr 13. W6 quote
th% r0ii0wfng leaguaga rrm the 0880 or sctltiraen~8. Pe*%r,
99 ‘SW 2nd I.0748
*‘lhe m mcuwy wh%n oolleoted and pLaeed in the
hands of th% eppeU.ents (the odttee) botmme a
txqet runu,.epdomlA an4 be dlebtwa%d snd &mid
out a8 prorId%d by statutes aertsStiAg it ooulQ not
be ep%nt by the ohelrmm oi the executive %omItt%%,
these eppellnnte (the oonmltt%%i,for 6elarioe and
servloeo performed by iA% ohalrmn, nor oould lt
be spent far uawoesearg oxpens68, but smet be
spent for t&s purposes intended by statute, snd
under the of
prcfvleIoue tha athutee authcaiai9g
suoh expenUItaree.w (P%renth%eleours)
Honey aollsoted u@sr th4 provisione0s &Marl*
3108 to defray the expense% ai the various oendideteeie
nem$netlon oanaot be epoat by the oooalttee aor the oh8irma
of the aotittea for itsme not rdthln the purview %f eei&
Article 3108. smell te. ~?arksr,u9 sw’2nd 609.
CI iqe rind no epe4Srio prwbion 06 to the amount
to
be peid su~l7iS4W8 jQ@VJ# Or OlCJrk8 in a pdBl8l’~ d.88tie.
There 01 the prml8ba se th0 p0jmnt 0s fudge8 a+a oi0rkO
fn gpmaraL. .aad ,apadal ~1eeMoarr oontabwd ia ~ArtSalo 2943,
abme, Rmwer, th%n 18 ant gimses" for.the pylaaat 4f
euperrisore%ppaInted and e%rv g la gemmel, ep%e %l OS pertr
prlmag oleotio~. We have no doubt but that the two euper-
vieore prwlded fm under drtiolo 3.104la party prlrrery elm-
tlons am oleotion ortio%re, en8 that tha oounty %xeoutlv%
oormlttoo he8 the authorlt~ to pay the ocmpewatfon of ebo-
tlon offloorsa8 expense4s the prlmnr~oleotionunder said
Artlalo 3108. It I8 tmr apinitm that the o~neation of two
supertiaor6&aeon by mm4ourtJi of the pnrty oaadidatee $a
a prtiarg eleotlan ehould be paid by the emoutiro aomi.tt%%
mad not tho p%rty candidates uhoodnff the two errpervleore.
Also, the mooat or oaupens%ticmdue mild ~parvloora not b%-
Ing govermd by statute 1% dleoretlonery*riththe exooutive
oonmItt%%as Is the mmunt to be paid juag%% end olerks ab
a prlnmry 0~eotIon.
Belle*Ing thla to answer your Inquiry; wo ar%
Yours wry truly
ATTCRtTXY@ENZRALOFTEXAS
~~o~~~~*1940 By /a/ Pat soon
Asalertsat
A7YYm3Er OkAL
PCAStjrb APPROmD OPmxOIo cmmmTRE
J3YBVB, Chelraran
.