Minutes 11/12/1957 - Laserfiche WebLink

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34 TUl!SDAY ~O~ER 12, 1957 ATTEST: Jesse D~ Clift, Clerk of the Circuit Court of the City of l4a.rtinsville, November 7, 1957. I, Jesse D. Clift, Cleric of the Circuit Court of the City of Martinsville do hereby certUY that the foregoing is a true copy of the Abstract of Votes given for the Bom Referendum. at the Special Election above named, as certified, signed ani attested accordi~ to law, and deposited in my office. IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my ham and affixed the seal of said C curt. (SEAL) S/Jesse D. Clift Clerk of the Circuit Court of the City of llartinsville, Virginia Being cognilant or the failure of one preciDCt election officials to separate the sewer bond referendum ballots in the mnner required by the city charter, Council adopted and issued the following statement of position: In the e 1e ction on November 5, 195 7, on the question of the Sewerage Sys tam Improvement Program, one of the requirements or 'the election was that the ballots of the freeholders and of the non-freeholders be submitted separately. It has been brought to the attention of the Ci1:o" Council that at one of the polling precirx:ts all of the ballots of the freeholders and non-freeholders were placed in the same ballot box, preventing the poss:ihility of any separate tabulation. This condition of the e1ection has placed the Cou.rx:il of the City in a situation which it finds to be unusual and to which it has given considerable thought. First, the Council neither wishes nor intends to indicate any question or criticism of the precinct election officials or of the City Electoral Board, which has general supervision over the conduct of the election. The total balloting on November 5th imluded a lengthy general election and two special elections 'Which created some possibility of confusion am required a great deal of work of the }recinct officials in both handling and counting the ballots . Secondly, the Coumil recognizes that the results, as endemed by the abstract prepared and submitted to the Council by the Clerk of the Court, indicate that City-wide a total of 1270 persons voted in favor of the sewerage issue and 1726 voted against. This majority is considered decisive and evidence of voter opinion on the issue as }roposed. However, the Council rims itself faced with the obligations of la1r in the matter of such a special election Ttberein the question of issuance of bonds is comemed. These requirements are intricate and specific.