Eligibility

The constitution of the United States provides that no person holding any office under the United States shall be a member of either house. The acceptance by a member of congress of a commission as a volunteer in the army vacates his seat; CI. & H. 122, 395, 637. But by a decision of the second comptroller of the treasury, of Feb. 24, 1894, it was held that there was no incompatibility of office between that of a member of the house of representatives and the military office held by an officer of the United States army on the retired list, and that he was entitled to pay for both offices. A centennial commissioner holds an office of trust or profit under the United States, and is thereby ineligible as a presidential elector; In re Corliss, 11 R. I. 638, ble to a federal office; Turney v. Marshall, 1 Bartl. 167; Trumbull's Election, 1 Bartl. 619. Duelling has been made in some states a disqualification for office; see Duelling. In Kentucky, it was held that the doing of any of the prohibited acts was a disqualification for office without a previous conviction; Cochrane v. Jones, 14 Am. L. Reg. N. S. 22; but this opinion has been questioned in a note to that case. See Mc Crary, Elect. 189. An alien cannot, even in the absence of any provision forbidding it, hold an office; State v. Van Beek, 87 la. 569, 54 N. W. 525, 19 L. R. A. 622, 43 Am. St. Rep. 397. See Cooley, Const. Lim. 748, n.; but he may be elected to an office; State v. Murray, 28 Wis. 96, 9 Am. Rep. 489; State v. Trumpf, 50 Wis. 103, 5 N. W. 876, 6 N. W. 512. And members elect of congress, who were ineligible on account of participation in the rebellion, have been admitted to a seat, their disqualification having been subsequently removed; Mc Crary, Elect. 193. The word eligibility, used in connection with an office, where there are no explanatory words indicating that it is used with reference to the time of election, refers to the qualification to hold the office rather than to be elected; Bradfield v. Avery, 16 Idaho 769, 102 Pac. 687, 23 L. R. A. (N. S.) 1228; Hoy v. State, 168 Ind. 506, 81 N. E. 509, 11 Ann. Cas. 944. As to the effect of the ineligibility of the candidate having the highest number of votes, see Election.

capacity to be elected. Citizens are in general eligible to all offices, the exceptions arise from the want of those qualifications which the constitution requires; these are suchas regard his person, his property, or relations to the state. 1. In general, no person is eligible to any office, until he has attained the full age of twenty-one years; no one can be elected a senator of the United States, who shall not have attained the age of thirty years, been a citizen of the United States nine years,.and who shall not be an inhabitant of the state for which he shall be chosen. Const. art. 1, s. 3. No person, except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States at the time of the adoption of this constitution, is eligible to the office of president, and no person shall be eligible to that office, who shall not have attained the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident within the United States. Const. art 2,58. ]. —2. A citizen may be ineligible in consequence of his relations-to the state, for example, holding an office incompatible with the office sought. Vide Ineligibility. Because he has not paid the taxes the law requires; because he has nat resided a suflicient length of time in the state.— 3. He may be ineligible for want of certain property qualifications required by the constitution of the state. Const. of Virginia, art. 3, s. 7.