The election for all elective City officers shall be held on the second Monday in September at a place to be designated by the Council. Notices of the designated place must be posted in three public places, at least ten days before said election. The polling places shall remain open 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., or longer at the discretion of the Council.
Every person who (1) is a citizen of the United States, (2) is at least eighteen (18) years of age, (3) has been a resident of the City of Seat Pleasant for at least thirty (30) days prior to the election and (4) is registered in accordance with the provisions of this Charter and City Ordinances, shall be a qualified voter of the City. Every qualified voter of the City shall be entitled to vote at any or all City elections.
[Amended 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
The City Clerk and the Board of Supervisors of Elections, consisting of three members who shall be appointed by the Mayor with the approval of the Council on or before the first Monday in January following their election. The terms of members of the Board of Supervisors of Election begin on the first Monday in January in the year in which they are appointed and run for four years. Members of the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall be qualified voters of the City and shall not hold or be candidates for any elective office during their term of office. The Mayor with Council consent shall appoint one of its members as chairperson. Vacancies on the Board shall be filled by the Mayor with Council consent for the remainder of the unexpired term. The compensation of the members of the Board shall be determined by the Council.
[Amended 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-06]
Any member of the Board of Supervisors of Elections can be removed by the Council at anytime, if in the judgment of the Council the member is not properly performing or will not properly perform the duties of the position. Any member of the Board of Supervisors shall not be removed by the Council unless an extraordinary majority of five Councilmembers concur at a regular or special meeting of the Council.
[Amended 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
The City Clerk and the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall be in charge of the registration of voters, nominations, and all City elections. The City Clerk and the Board may appoint election clerks or other employees to assist it in any of its duties.
The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall give at least two weeks notice of every registration day and every election by an advertisement published in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the City and by posting a notice thereof in some public place or places in the City.
[Amended 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-07]
There shall be Universal Voter Registration in conjunction with Prince George's County, Maryland as required by the Election Law Article, Sections 3-401, et seq., of the Maryland Annotated Code, as amended, of qualified persons not registered to vote. No person is entitled to vote in City elections unless he/she is registered. The Council, by ordinance, shall adopt and enforce any provisions necessary to establish and maintain a system of permanent registration and provide for a re-registration when necessary.
If any person is aggrieved by the action of the Board of Supervisors of Elections in refusing to register or in striking off the name of any person, or by any other action, he may appeal to the Council. Any decision or action of the Council upon such appeals may be appealed to the Circuit Court for the county within the time allowed for such appeals.
Two of the seven Councilpersons shall be selected at large and candidates for such positions shall have their names placed upon the ballots or upon the voting machine labels for all residents of the City. The other five Councilpersons shall be chosen respectively from the five subdivisions described herein below. Each such Councilperson shall reside in and be duly elected from the particular subdivision from which he becomes a candidate for office. The ballots or the voting machines shall be so arranged that the voters in any one subdivision shall be eligible to vote only for those candidates for the City Council coming from the particular subdivisions. The several subdivisions shall have the boundaries as described below.
(a)
Ward One. Beginning at the point of intersection of the northwest side of Addison Road and the northwest boundary of the City southwesterly along the City boundary to its intersection with the northeast side of Eastern Avenue; thence, southeasterly along the eastern side of Eastern Avenue to the intersection of said boundary with Martin Luther King Jr. Highway; thence, southeasterly along the City boundary to its intersection with Eades Street; thence, along the northwest side of Eades Street in a northeasterly direction to its intersection with Addison Road; thence in a southeasterly direction along the eastern side of Addison Road to its intersection with Drylog Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the northwest side Drylog Street to its intersection with 70th Street; thence, in a northwesterly direction along the southwest side of 70th Street to its intersection with Seat Pleasant Drive; thence, in a westerly direction along the south side of Seat Pleasant Drive to its intersection with Martin Luther King Jr. Highway; thence, in a southwesterly direction along the South side of Martin Luther King Jr. Highway to its intersection with Addison Road; thence, in a northwesterly direction along the west side of Addison Road to its intersection with "G" Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the north side of "G" Street to its intersection with 64th Avenue; thence, in a northerly direction along the west side of 64th Avenue to its intersection with 63rd Place; thence, in a northwesterly direction along the southwest side of 63rd Place to the intersection of Greig Street; thence, in a southwesterly direction along the south side of Greig Street to its intersection with Addison Road; thence, in a northerly direction along the southwest side of Addison Road to its intersection with the City Boundary.
(b)
Ward Two. Beginning at the northeast intersection of the City and the northwest side of Martin Luther King Jr. Highway in a westerly direction along the City boundary to its intersection with the northwest corner of the City boundary thence, in a southerly direction along the City boundary to its intersection with Addison Road; thence, in a southerly direction along the northeast side of Addison Road to its intersection with Greig Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the north side of Greig Street to its intersection with 63rd Place; thence in a southerly direction along the north side of 63rd Place to its intersection with 64th Avenue; thence, in a southerly direction along the east side of 64th Avenue to its intersection with "G" Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the north side of "G" Street to its intersection with Greig Street; thence, in an easterly direction along the north side of Greig Street to its intersection with Martin Luther King Jr. Highway; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the north side of Martin Luther King Jr. Highway to its intersection with the northerly City boundary.
(c)
Ward Three. Beginning at the northwest corner of the intersection of Birchleaf Avenue and Seat Pleasant Drive; thence, in a northerly direction along the west side of Birchleaf Avenue to its northern end; thence, extended on the line of said street to its intersection with Martin Luther King Jr. Highway; thence, in a southwesterly direction along the southeast side of Martin Luther King Jr. Highway to its intersection with Greig Street thence, in a westerly direction along the south side of Greig Street to its intersection with "G" Street; thence, in a southeasterly direction along the south side of "G" Street to its intersection with Addison Road; thence, in a southeasterly direction along the northeast side of Addison Road to its intersection with Martin Luther King Jr. Highway; thence, in an easterly direction along the north side of Martin Luther King Jr. Highway to its intersection with Addison Road and Seat Pleasant Drive; thence, in an easterly direction along the north side of Seat Pleasant Drive to its intersection with 70th Street; thence, in a southerly direction along the east side of 70th Street to its intersection with Drylog Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the north side of Drylog Street to its intersection with the eastern boundary of the City; thence, in a northerly direction along the eastern boundary of the City to its intersection with Seat Pleasant Drive; thence, in an easterly direction along the north side of Seat Pleasant Drive to its intersection with Birchleaf Avenue.
(d)
Ward Four. Beginning at the intersection of Seat Pleasant Drive and the Cabin Branch Tributary; thence, in a westerly direction along the Cabin Branch Tributary and City boundary to their intersection with Martin Luther King Jr. Highway; thence, in a southwesterly direction along the south side of Martin Luther King Jr. Highway to its intersection with the northerly direction along Birchleaf Avenue and its extension along its east side to its intersection with Seat Pleasant Drive; thence, in an easterly direction along the north side of Seat Pleasant Drive to its intersection with the Cabin Branch Tributary.
(e)
Ward Five. Beginning at the intersection of Drylog Street and Cabin Branch Creek; thence, in a southerly direction along Cabin Branch Creek to its intersection with Central Avenue; thence, in a westerly direction along the north side of Central Avenue to its intersection with the western City boundary; thence, in a northwesterly direction along the westerly City boundary to its intersection with the western extension of Eades Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the south of Eades Street to its intersection with Addison Road; thence, in a southerly direction along the west side of Addison Road to its intersection with Drylog Street; thence, in a northeasterly direction along the south side of Drylog Street to its intersection with the Cabin Branch Creek.
Candidates for election to the office of Councilmember or Mayor shall file with the Board of Election Supervisors a petition signed by at least 20 registered voters of the City of Seat Pleasant at least sixty (60) days (including Sundays and holidays) prior to the date of such election. Such petition shall state (1) the name and address of the candidate, (2) the fact that such person is eligible for election to the office of Councilmember or Mayor and (3) that such person wishes his name placed on the ballot as candidate. Such petition shall be sworn to by the person filing same, both as to the fact of the candidate's eligibility and as to the genuineness of the signatures of such petition. No person shall be eligible for elective City public office who has not fulfilled the requirements of this section. No candidate shall file for election for more than one City public office at any one election.
Beginning on the second Monday in September, 1976, and every fourth year thereafter, the City shall elect the Mayor and all seven Councilmembers.
[Amended 7-13-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-02; 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
It is the duty of the City Clerk and the Board of Supervisors of Elections to provide for each special and general election a suitable place or places for voting and suitable ballot boxes and ballots and/or voting machines and/or vote by mail. The ballots and/or voting machines shall show the name of each candidate nominated for elective office in accordance with the provisions of this Charter, arranged in alphabetical order by office with no party designation of any kind.
Any qualified voter registered to vote in the City of Seat Pleasant is entitled to vote in any municipal election by absentee ballot.
[Amended 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
The City Clerk and the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall mail absentee ballots to qualified voters, at the request of those voters, not less than twenty days prior to the election. All absentee ballots shall be delivered to City Hall before the day of election.
[Amended 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06; 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-08]
All special City elections shall be conducted by the Board of Supervisors of Elections with the assistance of the City Clerk in the same manner and with the same personnel, if practicable, as regular City elections, in accordance with the provisions of this section as follows:
(a)
Generally. In addition to regularly scheduled elections, special elections shall be held to resolve elections resulting in a tie and/or to fill vacancies that have greater than fifteen months of time before the next regularly scheduled election, which shall be conducted pursuant to this section.
(b)
Runoff elections.
(1)
If, in any election directed by the Charter, any two or more candidates for the office of Mayor or Councilmember who have received the highest number of votes receive an equal number of votes, or the vote upon any binding referendum results in a tie, a runoff special election between these candidates and/or tied referenda shall be ordered and conducted by the Board.
(2)
Any runoff special election required by Subsection (b)(1) of this section shall be held within seventy-five (75) days of the election in which the tie vote occurred and shall include those offices for which the equal number of votes was cast or referendum questions which resulted in a tie vote.
(c)
Special election to fill vacancy
(1)
If at any point the office of the Mayor and/or one or more seats on the Council becomes vacant with more than fifteen (15) months remaining in the term, the Board of Supervisors of Elections, at the direction of the Council, shall conduct a special election to fill the vacancies.
(2)
The special election shall be held within seventy-five (75) days of the date the vacancy was created.
(3)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, no special election to fill a vacancy shall be held.
[Amended 7-13-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-02; 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
The City Clerk and the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall begin counting the votes immediately after the polls have closed. All votes shall be counted to include the regular ballot, absentee and vote by mail ballots. Once the actual vote counting begins, no persons shall enter or leave the room in which the vote count is being conducted until completion of the vote count. The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall complete the vote count within twenty-four hours after the polls have closed, shall determine the number of votes cast for each candidate and shall certify this result to the Clerk of the City who shall record the result in the minutes of the Council. The candidate for Mayor with the highest number of votes shall be declared elected as Mayor. The candidates for election to the vacancies as Councilmembers with the highest number of votes shall be declared elected. The declarations shall be proclaimed by the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Election within forty-eight hours after the vote count at a special public meeting. A tie vote shall be decided by special election between the tied candidates.
[Amended 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-09]
All ballots and records used in any City election shall be preserved for two years from the date of the election.
The Council shall have the power to provide by ordinance in every respect not covered by the provisions of this Charter for the conduct of registration, nomination, and elections and for the prevention of fraud in connection therewith, and for a recount of ballots in case of doubt or fraud.
[Amended 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-10]
All persons, who are otherwise eligible, shall have equal rights and privileges in registering, voting, and holding City offices, and shall not be discriminated against because of race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion or sex.
Any person who (a) fails to perform any duty required of him under the provisions of this sub-title or any ordinances passed thereunder, (b) in any manner willfully or corruptly violates any of the provisions of this sub-title or any ordinances passed thereunder, or (c) willfully or corruptly does anything which will or will tend to affect fraudulently any registration, nomination, or election, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor. Any officer or employee of the City government who is convicted of a misdemeanor under the provisions of this section shall immediately upon conviction thereof cease to hold such office or employment.
[Added 7-13-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-02]
City elections will be by mail-in ballot voting with one voting center at City Hall open on election day for in-person voting. The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall keep the voting center open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Election Day.
[Added 5-3-2021 by Res. No. CA-21-08]
The Mayor or a City Councilmember may be recalled and removed from office in accordance with the following procedure:
(a)
Registered voters may file a petition signed by at least twenty (20) percent of the registered and qualified voters of the City with the City Clerk for the recall of any Councilmember or Mayor with six (6) or more months remaining in his or her term. A special recall election shall be held if twenty percent (20%) of the registered voters, within the Ward of the affected Councilmember or within the City for Councilmembers elected at large or the Mayor, have signed the petition within thirty (30) days of its filing. Registered voters are those persons qualified to vote in a General City Election as certified by the Board of Supervisors of Elections.
(b)
The qualified registered voters signing such petition shall date and sign the same as their names appear on the City's election records and under each signature shall be typed or printed each petitioner's name, current address. At the bottom of each page of the petition, the individual circulating the petition shall sign the same and make an affidavit before a notary public that he or she circulated the petition and saw each individual whose name appears thereon sign the same in his or her presence.
(c)
The petition shall state specifically the justification for recall of the Mayor or a Councilmember, for one or more of the reasons set forth in § C-310 and/or malfeasance in office, misfeasance in office or nonfeasance in office.
(d)
Upon receipt of the petition, the City Clerk shall refer the petition to the City Board of Supervisors of Elections for verification of the signatures. Upon verification of the signatures on the petition, the City Board of Supervisors of Elections shall immediately report its findings to the Mayor and Council at the next scheduled meeting, but no later than 21 days from the date the petition was referred to the Board of Supervisors of Elections. If the Board of Supervisors of Elections has determined that a valid recall petition containing a sufficient number of signatures from qualified voters has been submitted, the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall schedule the special recall election within thirty (30) days of certification of the petition. Set a date for a referendum to be held within sixty days of the petition verification. If the official subject to the recall was elected from a ward, only the registered voters from that ward may vote in the recall election; otherwise, all qualified voters of the City may participate in the recall election.
(e)
The voting ballot will contain the official's name and the choice of "reaffirm" or "remove." In order for the official to be removed, a majority of those voting must vote "remove."