Page 4-Wednesday, May 14, 1980-The Michigan Daily
Anderson should
be off May ballot
JOHN ANDERSON is no longer running in the
Republican presidential race. There is no
reason his name should appear on the May 20
primary ballot.
Attorney General Frank Kelley's ruling that An-
derson's name must appear beside the names of
true contenders George Bush and Ronald Reagan
will only baffle and discourage voters. The vote in
primary elections is sparse enough without con-
fusing, bureaucratic laws that allow voters to
choose a candidate who is not running.
If Anderson's name remains on the ballot, the
true candidates will not get their fair share of the
votes. Kelley has said that Anderson delegates will
become uncommitted
delegates who select the REPUBLICAN
candidate they will represent PARTY
at the Republican convention
in July. The voters should PRESIDENT OF THE
have that choice. UNITED STATES
Those who would have VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN ONE
selected Anderson as a first Q JOHN B. ANDERSON
choice for Republican Q GEORGE BUSH
presidential candidate ElBENJAMIN FERNANDEU
should have the opportunity ElRONALD REAGAN
to vote for their second E HAROLD STASSEN
choice since Anderson is no w UNCOMMITED
longer running. If Ander-
son's name is left on the ballot many justifiably will
think he is running and unknowingly give their
votes to uncommitted delegates. If Anderson's
name is off the ballot, voters will be able to choose
his replacement themselves.
Bush and his followers are understandably upset
about Kelley's ruling. No doubt many of the votes
Anderson will receive in next week's election would
go to Bush if the ballots were printed as it should
be. In an encouraging move, the state GOP has said
it will go to court to try to force Anderson's name
off the ballot to keep the election "pure."
The statute that requires a candidate to with-
draw his or her name from the ballot by March 21 is
one of many that were written with no provision for
major third party candidates. The statutory with-
drawal deadline is silent on what should be done
when a candidate changes his party and decides to
run as an independent.
Americans express a clear desire each election
year for another choice in addition to the can-
didates from the two major parties, yet ironically,
election laws virtually ignore third party can-
didates.
Anderson will need supporting votes in the
August 5 primary and the November 5 election. But
votes in next week's primary should go to those
candidates who are triue contenders for the
Republican no-ination.
Daily Photo by MAUREEN O'MALLEY "
LEFT, A man and his son; show that men are indeed for the ERA, as they march in Chicago last
Saturday to urge the Illinois congress to approve the amendment. Right, a woman and her
daughter hoist the Homemakers of America flag, representing another of the diverse groups that
participated in the march.
Baseball, ho-togs
apple pie and ERA
When Phil Donahue stepped up T he ralliera werei
to the speaker's podium during By Elisa Isaacson their trek down Columi
last weekend's ERA rally in by purple, gold and w
Chicago, he told his ap- ners identifying them
proximately.100,000 listeners why patriotic. (Primarily anti-abor- and as cities; accordin
he loved them. "You smile, and tion, these people claimed that religious affiliations, th
you care, and youre for children, passage of the ERA would preferences, their
fam s, mohedsfathers, necessarily mean full legal sup- beliefs; and joined
apple pie, hot dogs, and horses, port for abortions as well. "Take professions and thf
and cats, and the ERA." Gloria Steinem and all those brackets.
That version of Americana un- people," one man said, "They're
hatfiablladi at om the cro always both pro-ERA and pro- As I looked out over t
flowing. And it was evident fror abortion, too. If the ERA is I realized how incongr
this one event alone that the fight passed, women will want the that in this day and ai
for equality of the sexes was not right to be un-pregnant, just like country where while e
-freult ftesxswsntmen.") far from peeniti
as the anti-ERA cliches would present, it is
have us believe, championed only THE FACES of the anti-ERA intellectual concern,t
by young, radical lesbians, but by marchers had a haunted look people who fear the
the most representative cross- about them; they were utterly Erma Bombeck on
section of the United States convinced of their righteousness, "Twenty-four words hz
anyone could imagine: but they lamented in pained been so misunderstood
everybody from labor union voices that the entire legal four words 'One size fits
members to Mormons to system is against them. If only -
presidential candidates to people understood the evils of the The Chicage marche
professionals to homemakers and ERA and abortion, these demon- the ERA because it i
students and kids. strators insisted, they would not because it is fair, an
6
united in
bus Drive,
'hite ban-
as states
g/to their
eir sexual
political
by their
7eir age
the crowd,
uous it is
ge, in this
quality is
at least an
there are
ERA. As
ce said,
ave never
since the
all.' "
rs are for
s logical,
d because
a
THESE ENERGETIC mar-
chers were proof that the Nor-
man Rockwell America is the
same America that is now
working for ratification of a Con-
stitutional amendment that
would make them all citizens in
the true legal sense of the word.
Yet there seems to be a grave
misunderstanding still filtering
its way from the perpetrators to
the public. The anti-ERA group
that marched along the outskirts
of the park sang "God Bless
America" as they held aloft their
miniature coffin and wooden
cross, suggesting that the masses
on- the lawn- were -perhapsun-
be supporting it. "we're pro-
life," they said, eying the ERA
rallers suspiciously.
It was as if that small
gathering wore invisible glasses
of such a strange tint that they
failed to register the celebration
of life, family, and community
coming from the lawn. Sitting on
the bank of the park were four
generations of females, all from
the same family and ranging in
age from two years old to 70. A
six-year-old girl stood quietly by
the loudspeaker, wearing a but-
ton that read, "It's my future."
Her mother and father were
nearby, acting as marshals for
therally.
anything less would be ludicrous,
in terms of our country's foun-
ding principles. The optimism at
Grant park was infectious, and it
should be strong enough to reach
Springfield today. If it doesn't, I
am sure that when Americans a
generation from now read history
books they will be shocked to find
that in 1980 there was still no
equal rights amendment in the
Constitution.
Elisa Isaacson is co-editor
of the Daily's Sunday
magazine. She attended the
ERA rally in Chicago Satur-
day.
I
111
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