Randolph. Rappahannock. Roanoke, Scott. Smyth, Southampton, Spotsylvania, Taylor, Upshur, Warren, Wayne, Wetzel, Wood, and Wythe, and the cities of Norfolk and Petersburg, shall each elect one delegate. The counties of Lee and Scott, in addition to the delegate to be elected by each, shall together elect one delegate. The following counties and cities shall compose election districts: Alleghany and Bath; Amelia and Nottoway: Boone, Wyoming, and Logan; Braxton and Nicholas: Charles City, James City, and New Kent; Cumberland and Powhatan: Doddridge and Tyler; Elizabeth City, Warwick, York, and the city of Williamsburg; Essex and King and Queen; Fayette and Raleigh: Gilmer and Wirt; Greene and Orange; Greenesville and Sussex; King George and Stafford; Lancaster and Northumberland; Matthews and Middlesex; Pleasants and Ritchie; Prince George and Surrey; and Richmond and Westmoreland; each of which districts shall elect one delegate. At the first general election under this constitution, the county of Ohio shall elect three delegates, and the counties of Brooke and йancock shall together elect one delegate; at the second general election, the county of Ohio shall elect two delegates, and the counties of Brooke and Hancock shall each elect one delegate; and so on, alternately, at succeeding general elections. At the first general election the county of Russell shall elect two delegates, and the county of Tazewell shall elect one delegate; at the second general election, the county of Tazewell shall elect two delegates, and the county of Russell shall elect one delegate; and so on, alternately, at succeeding general elections. The general assembly shall have power, upon application of a majority of the voters of the county of Campbell, to provide, that instead of the two delegates to be elected by said county, the town of Lynchburg shall elect one delegate, and the residue of the county of Campbell shall elect one delegate. SENATE SEC. 3. The other house of the general assembly shall be called the senate, and shall consist of fifty members, to be elected for the term of four years; for the election of whom the counties, cities, and towns shall be divided into fifty districts. Each county, city, and town of the respective districts, at the time of the first election of its delegate or delegates under this constitution, shall vote for one senator; and the sheriffs or other officers holding the election for each county, city, and town, within five days at farthest after the last election in the district, shall meet at the court-house of the county or city first named in the district, and from the polls so taken in their respective counties, cities, and towns, return as senator the person who has received the greatest number of votes in the whole district. Upon the assembling of the senators so elected, they shall be divided in two equal classes, to be numbered by lot. The term of service of the senators of the first class shall expire with that of the delegates first elected under this constitution, and of the senators of the second class at the expiration of two years thereafter; and this alternation shall be continued, so that one-half of the senators may be chosen every -econd year. SEC. 4. For the election of senators I. The counties of Accomack and Northampton shall form one district. II. The city of Norfolk shall be another district. III. The counties of Norfolk and Princess Anne shall form another district. IV. The counties of Isle of Wight, Nansemond, and Surry shall form another district. V. The counties of Sussex, Southampton, and Greenesville shall form another district. VI. The city of Petersburg and the county of Prince George shall form another district. VII. The counties of Dinwiddie, Amelia, and Brunswick shall form another district. VIII. The counties of Powhatan, Cumberland, and Chesterfield shall form another district. IX. The counties of Lunenburg, Nottoway, and Prince Edward shall form another district. X. The counties of Mecklenburg and Charlotte shall form another district. XI. The county of Pittsylvania shall be another district. XIII. The counties of Henry, Patrick, and Franklin shall form another district. XIV. The county of Bedford shall be another district. XV The counties of Campbell and Appomattox shall form another district. XVI. The city of Williamsburg and the counties of James City, Charles City, New Kent, York, Elizabeth City, and Warwick shall form another district. XVII. The counties of Henrico and Hanover shall form another district. XVIII. The city of Richmond shall be another district. XIX. The counties of Gloucester, Matthews, and Middlesex shall form another district. XX. The counties of Richmond, Lancaster, Northumberland, and Westmoreland shall form another district. XXI. The counties of King and Queen, King William, and Essex shall form another district. XXII. The counties of Caroline and Spottsylvania shall form another district. XXIII. The counties of Stafford, King George, and Prince William shall form another district. XXIV. The counties of Fairfax and Alexandria shall form another district. XXV. The county of Loudoun shall be another district. XXVI. The counties of Fauquier and Rappahannock shall form another district. XXVII. The counties of Madison, Culpeper, Orange, and Greene shall form another district. XXVIII. The county of Albemarle shall be another district. XXIX. The counties of Louisa, Goochland, and Fluvanna shall form another district. XXX. The counties of Nelson, Amherst, and Buckingham shal! form another district. XXXI. The counties of Jefferson and Berkeley shall form another district. XXXII. The counties of Hampshire, Hardy, and Morgan shall form another district. XXXIII. The counties of Frederick, Clarke, and Warren shall form another district. XXXIV. The counties of Shenandoah and Page shall form another district. XXXV. The counties of Rockingham and Pendleton shall form another district. XXXVI. The county of Augusta shall be another district. XXXVII. The counties of Bath, Highland, and Rockbridge shall form another district. XXXVIII. The counties of Botetourt, Alleghany, Roanoke, and Craig shall form another district. XXXIX. The counties of Carroll, Floyd, Grayson, Montgomery, and Pulaski shall form another district. XL. The counties of Mercer, Monroe, Giles, and Tazewell shall form another district. XLI. The counties of Smyth, Wythe, and Washington shall form another district. XLII. The counties of Scott, Lee, and Russell shall form another Jistrict. XLIII. The counties of Boone, Logan, Kanawha, Putnam, and Wyoming shall form another district. XLIV. The counties of Nicholas, Fayette Pocahontas, Raleigh, Braxton, and Greenbrier shall form another district. XLV. The counties of Mason, Jackson, Cabell, Wayne, and Wirt shall form another district. XLVI. The counties of Ritchie, Doddridge, Harrison, Pleasants, and Wood shall form another district. XLVII. The counties of Wetzel, Marshall, Marion, and Tyler shall form another district. XLVIII. The counties of Upshur, Barbour, Lewis, Gilmer, and Randolph shall form another district. XLIX. The counties of Monongalia, Preston, and Taylor shall form another district. L. The counties of Brooke, Hancock, and Ohio shall form another district. APPORTIONMENT OF REPRESENTATION SEC. 5. It shall be the duty of the general assembly, in the year one thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, and in every tenth year thereafter, in case it can agree upon a principle of representation, to reapportion representation in the senate and house of delegates in accordance therewith; and in the event the general assembly, at the first or any subsequent period of reapportionment, shall fail to agree upon a principle of representation and to reapportion representation in acordance therewith, each house shall separately propose a scheme of representation, containing a principle or rule for the house of delegates, in connection with a principle or rule for the And it shall be the duty of the general assembly, at the same session, to certify to the governor the principles or rules of representation which the respective houses may separately propose, to be applied in making reapportionments in the senate and in the house of delegates; and the governor shall, as soon thereafter as may be, by proclamation, make known the propositions of the respective houses, and require the voters of the commonwealth to assemble at such time as he shall appoint, at their lawful places of voting, and decide by their votes between the propositions thus presented. In the event the general assembly shall fail, in the year one thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, or in any tenth year thereafter, to make such reapportionment or certificate, the governor shall, immediately after the adjournment of the general assembly, by proclamation, require the voters of the commonwealth to assemble, at such time as he shall appoint, at their lawful places of voting, and to declare by their votes First, whether representation in the senate and house of delegates shall be apportioned on the "suffrage basis;" that is, according to the number of voters in the several counties, cities, towns, and senatorial districts of the commonwealth; Or, second, whether representation in both houses shall be apportioned on the "mixed basis;" that is, according to the number of white inhabitants, contained, and the amount of all State taxes paid, in the several counties, cities, and towns of the commonwealth, deducting therefrom all taxes paid on licenses and law process, and any capitation tax on free negroes, allowing one delegate for every seventy-sixth part of said inhabitants, and one delegate for every seventy-sixth part of said taxes, and distributing the senators in like manner; Or, third, whether representation shall be apportioned in the senate on taxation; that is, according to the amount of all State taxes paid in the several counties, cities, and towns of the commonwealth, deducting therefrom all taxes paid on licenses and law process, and any capitation-tax on free negroes, and in the house of delegates on the "suffrage basis" as aforesaid; Or, fourth, whether representation shall be apportioned in the senate on the "mixed basis as aforesaid, and in the house of delegates on the "suffrage basis" as aforesaid; and each voter shall cast his vote in favor of one of said schemes of apportionment, and no more. SEC. 6. It shall be the duty of the sheriffs and other officers taking said polls to keep the same open for the period of three days, and, within five days after they are closed, to certify true copies thereof to the governor, who shall, as early as may be, ascertain the result of said vote, and make proclamation thereof; and in case it is ascertained that a majority of all the votes cast is in favor of either of the principles of representation, referred as aforesaid to the choice of the voters, the governor shall communicate the result of such vote to the general assembly, at its first regular session thereafter; but in case it is ascertained that a majority of all the votes cast is not in favor of either of the principles of representation referred as aforesaid to the choice of the voters, it shall be the duty of the governor, as soon as may be after ascertaining that fact, in like manner to cause the voters to decide between the two principles of representation which shall, at such previous voting, have received the greatest number of votes; and he shall ascertain and make proclamation of the result of the said last vote, and communicate the same to the general assembly at its next regular session; and in either case, the general assembly, at the regular session thereof which shall be held next after the taking of the vote, the result of which shall have been so communicated to it by the governor, shall reapportion representation in the two houses respectively in accordance with the principle of representation in each for which a majority of the votes cast were given; and it shall be the duty of the general assembly in every tenth year thereafter to reapportion and distribute the number of senators and delegates in accordance with the same principle. QUALIFICATIONS OF SENATORS AND DELEGATES SEC. 7. Any person may be elected senator who, at the time of election, has attained the age of twenty-five years, and is actually a resident within the district, and qualified to vote for members of the general assembly, according to this constitution. And any person may be elected a member of the house of delegates who, at the time of election, has attained the age of twenty-one years, and is actually a resident within the county, city, town, or election district, qualified to vote for members of the general assembly according to this constitution; but no person holding a lucrative office, no minister of the gospel or priest of any religious denomination, no salaried officer of any banking corporation or company, and no attorney for the commonwealth shall be capable of being elected a member of either house of assembly. The removal of any person elected to either branch of the general assembly from the county, city, town, or district for which he was elected shall vacate his office. POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY SEC. 8. The general assembly shall meet once in every two years, and not oftener, unless convened by the governor in the manner prescribed in this constitution. No session of the general assembly, after the first under this constitution, shall continue longer thin ninety days, without the concurrence of three-fifths of the members elected to each house; in which case the session may be extended for a further period, not exceeding thirty days. Neither house, during the session of the general assembly, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting. A majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to do business, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and shall be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members in such manner and under such penalties as each house may provide. SEC. 9. The house of delegates shall choose its own speaker, and, in the absence of the lieutenant-governor, or when he shall exercise the office of governor, the senate shall choose from their own body a president pro tempore, and each house shall appoint its own officers, settle its own rules of proceeding, and direct writs of election for supplying intermediate vacancies; but if vacancies shall occur during the recess of the general assembly, such writs may be issued by the governor, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. Each house shall judge of the election, qualification, and returns of its members, may punish them for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence |