Castagnetto v. Superior Court

THE COURT

is an application for a writ of prohibition to prevent the superior court of Mariposa County from proceeding with the trial of a contest of nomination as provided for in section 28 of the primary election law (Stats. 1917, p. 1363). It is claimed that the affidavit is insufficient because it does not specify separately the precincts in which a recount is demanded nor sufficiently specify the “nature of the mistake, error, misconduct, or other cause why it is claimed that the returns from such precinct do not correctly state the vote as east in such precinct, for the contestant and the contestee” (see. 28,

su-pra).

While it may be conceded that an affidavit which utterly fails to state any ground of contest provided for in section 28 would not give the court jurisdiction, and therefore the trial of the contest should be prevented by a writ of prohibition as might be done in cases of contempt

(Hutton

v.

Superior Court,

147 Cal. 156 [81 Pac. 409];

Otis

v.

Superior Court,

148 Cal. 129 [82 Pac. 853];

In re McCarthy,

[664]

154 Cal. 534 [98 Pac. 540]; see, also,

Kilburn

v.

Law,

111 Cal. 237 [43 Pac. 615] ;

Cline

v.

Superior Court,

184 Cal. 331 [193 Pac. 929]), nevertheless similar allegations as a basis for an election contest have been sustained as sufficient

(Abbott