Office of the Historian

File No. 893.001Y9/7.

Chargé Williams to the Secretary of State.

[Extract.]
No. 1048.]
American Legation,
Peking, October 11, 1913.

Sir: * * * In my telegrams of July 26 and September 302 I informed the Department of the decision taken by the Assembly to adopt that part of the Constitution which is to deal with the Executive, and immediately thereafter to hold the election. Forty-five days were allowed the Constitutional Committee for this work. This was subsequently found to be too short a time and an additional ten days were granted. Still the Committee failed to come to agreement upon many points and the Assembly finally decided to pass an act providing a procedure for immediate election. This act, which contains seven articles and a supplementary article, passed its third reading of the two Houses in joint session on October 4. I enclose a copy of the same in translation.* * *

I have [etc.]

E. T. Williams
.
[Inclosure.]

The Presidential Election Law, promulgated October 5, 1913.

[Translation from the Peking Daily News of October 6, 1913; corrected by the Assistant Chinese Secretary.]

The Parliament of the Chinese Republic hereby publishes the Election Law:

Article 1. A native of China over forty years of age, possessing citizen’s rights complete and unimpaired, who has lived in the country for upwards of ten years, is eligible to the Presidency of the Republic.

[Page 42]

Article 2. The Electoral College for the election of the President shall be organized by the Parliament of the Republic. Secret ballots shall be used in the presidential election. That person who shall secure a three-fourth’s plurality of votes out of an attendance of two-thirds of the members of the Electoral College shall be elected. But if the required plurality cannot be obtained after two attempts, then a final vote shall be taken on the two names which have received the largest number of votes, and the person who receives more than one-half of the votes cast shall be elected President of the Republic.

Article 3. The presidential terms shall be five years. The President may submit himself for reelection, and be reelected for one consecutive term.

Three months prior to the expiration of the President’s term of office the members of Parliament shall meet on their own initiative and organize an Electoral College to elect the President for the following term.

Article 4. On assuming office the President shall take the following oath:

“I swear that I will honestly adhere to the Constitution and faithfully perform my duties as President of the Republic.”

Article 5. Should the post of President be vacated, the Vice President will succeed to it, and serve until the expiration of the regular term.

Should the President be unable to perform his duties, the Vice President will act for him.

Should the Vice President vacate his post (while acting for the President), the Cabinet will perform the President’s duties. Meanwhile, within three months thereafter, the members of Parliament will organize, on their own initiative, an Electoral College to elect the President for the following term.

Article 6. The President shall vacate his post on the expiration of his term. If at the expiration of the President’s term a new President shall not have been elected, or, if elected, shall not have been inaugurated, and the new Vice President shall also be unable to act for the new President, then the duties of the President shall be performed by the Cabinet.

Article 7. The election of the Vice President shall be held at the same time as the election of the President and in accordance with the same regulations.

Should the post of Vice President be vacated, the election of a new Vice President will be held.

Supplementary Article. Before the adoption of the Permanent Constitution, the provisions of the Provisional Constitution defining the powers of the President shall be in force.

  1. Not printed.↩