Pumphrey v. Stockett

The following order was filed Per Curiam by Marbury, C. J.: For reasons to be stated in an opinion hereafter to be filed, it appearing that a vacancy occurred prior to the primary election which was not filled as provided by law, it is therefore ordered by the Court of Appeals this 29th day of October, 1946, that the order appealed from herein be and it is hereby affirmed with costs to the appellees. ³²⁰ Marbury, C. J., delivered the opinion of the Court. Appellants, Linton A. Pumphrey, a resident of Anne Arundel County, and William H. Meade, Chairman of the Republican State Central Committee for that county, filed their petition for mandamus on October 21, 1946, in the Circuit Court for the county against the local Board of Supervisors of Elections, appellees here. The object sought was to have Pumphrey’s name placed upon the official ballots of the county as a Republican candidate for the office of County Commissioner. The Supervisors demurred, the case was heard below on October 23d, the demurrer was sustained and the petition dismissed.

An appeal was entered on the following day, the papers were immediately transmitted and the case was advanced and heard here on October 29th. On the same day; a per curiam order was filed affirming the order of the lower court. The reasons for that determination are now given. The elections of 1946 were held under the provisions of the Absentee Voting Law (Code, Article 33, Section 123 et seq., as enacted by Chapter 934 of the Acts of 1945), the country being still officially at war.

These provisions fixed the date of the primary election as June 24, 1946, and provided that all candidates for nomination must file their certificates on or before April 15, 1946. It is further provided (Sec. 130A) that “No candidate shall withdraw within sixty-five (65) days preceding the primary or general election.” The petition for mandamus alleges that a certain Edgar Adams in due time and in proper form filed his certificate of candidacy for the Republican nomination as a County Commissioner from the Fourth Election District of Anne Arundel in the primary election of June 24, 1946. That he did so for the purpose of filling the place and later withdrawing so that the vacancy could be filled by the Republican State Central Committee. On April 20, 1946, Adams filed with the defendants (appellees here) his request that his name be withdrawn as a candidate for County Commissioner and that refund ³²¹ be made of his filing fee, paid at the time of filing his certificate of candidacy.

These requests were complied with by the appellees. Thereafter on August 24, 1946, which was clearly not within 65 days of the general election, the Republican State Central Committee attempted to fill the vacancy thus apparently created by certifying to the appellees the name of the appellant Pumphrey and paying Pumphrey’s filing fee. The appellees at first accepted this certificate and printed Pumphrey’s name on the absentee ballots, sent to applicants therefor who were absent in military service. Thereafter, on October 17, 1946, the appellees ruled that Pumphrey had not been properly nominated, and that his name would not be placed on the official ballot to be used at the election to be held on November 5, 1946.

By Section 55 of Article 33, a State Central Committee for a county is authorized to fill any vacancy occurring because of the resignation or death of any person nominated as a candidate for an office in that county, but by Section 43 this power is restricted to cases of death, declination of nomination or the becoming inoperative or insufficient of any certificate of nomination “from any cause occurring after the period of time for the fining of vacancies in party nominations as is prescribed by Section 39.” This restriction was inserted after the decision of this Court in Rasin v. Leaverton, 181 Md. 91 , 28 A. 2d 612 , 143 A. L. R. 1021. By Section 39 it is provided that in case of any vacancy “by reason of there being no candidate to file for the same in any such primary election such vacancy shall be filled * * * not later than fifteen days before the * * * primary * * The first question before us is the proper