Detroit Won’t Extend Holiday Balloting Hours

All efforts to secure an extension of time on primary day, September 11, which is the second day of Rosh Hashonah, have failed.

Numerous petitions have been presented to the City Council in an effort to extend the hours for balloting, in order to give orthodox voters an opportunity to vote after the 8 p. m. deadline. However, the state law prevents action by the Council, and only a special law passed by the State Legislature would have made it possible for the hours to be extended.

GOVERNOR INTERCEDED

Governor William Comstock asked the Legislature, on the last day of its recent session, to pass such a bill but the proposal died in committee.

A later effort was made to have the Detroit City Council pass an ordinance that balloting on primary day be conducted according to Central Standard Time, which would have given the Jewish voters until 9 p. m. instead of 8 p. m. to vote. There are 75,000 Jews in Detroit, whereas in the rest of Michigan there are not more than about 5,000 additional Jews, scattered in a dozen communities. This effort also failed when it was discovered that a state law, passed in 1931, set the closing time for the polls at 8 p. m. Eastern Standard Time.

EDITORIAL URGES VOTING

The Detroit Jewish Chronicle, in an editorial in tomorrow’s issue will call upon all Jewish voters to be in line at 7:30 p. m. when writing will be permissible, and to utilize the occasion “for a demonstration of Jewish loyalty and for an expression of patriotism by the casting of ballots.”