[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the City of
Aberdeen 10-24-1994 by Ord. No. 430-94 (Ch. 3 of the 1990 Code). Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Amended 8-8-2011 by Ord. No. 11-O-07; 2-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-02]
A certificate of candidacy, as referenced in the City Charter,[1] in a form approved by the City Manager, shall be submitted
by each candidate to the Board of Elections or its authorized representative
during the prescribed time period. The certificate of candidacy must
be accompanied by a fee of $25. Candidates may withdraw their candidacy
no later than 30 days prior to election, in writing. The candidate
must satisfy all qualifications for office as established in the Aberdeen
City Charter. The certificate of candidacy must state the period during
which the candidate has been domiciled in the City.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Charter § VII, Elections and
Board of Elections.
[Amended 2-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-02; 3-11-2019 by Ord. No. 19-O-01]
Within five business days after the last day for filing certificates of candidacy, the Board of Elections shall review the certificates of candidacy to determine whether the candidates are eligible for election to the office which each candidate seeks. Within 10 business days after last day for filing a certificate of candidacy, the Ethics Commission shall review each candidate’s financial disclosure form required by Chapter 43 of this Code and report its findings to the Board of Elections in that same time period. In the event that the Board shall find that the candidate is not eligible for election or that the candidate has not satisfactorily completed the financial disclosure form, the Board shall reject the certificate of candidacy and so advise the candidate.
[Amended 8-8-2011 by Ord. No. 11-O-07; 2-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-02; 3-11-2019 by Ord. No. 19-O-01]
Certificates of candidacy shall be properly completed and filed at Aberdeen City Hall with the City Clerk only or designee no later than 5:00 p.m. local time no earlier than the day after Labor Day and no later than nine business days after Labor Day. Should the closing day fall on a weekend, holiday or day that City Hall is closed, the last prior legal business day for the City of Aberdeen will be considered as the closing day. A candidate’s financial disclosure form shall be filed within the time required by § 43-4B of this Code.
[Amended 3-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-01]
The candidate shall name a treasurer who will be responsible
for receiving and disbursing all campaign funds. The treasurer's
name must appear on all campaign materials, advertisements, etc. No
other individual or group may spend money directly to aid the candidate
unless the person/group is identified and so states that information;
all such support should be directed through the treasurer. The campaign
treasurer shall provide to the Board a telephone number with answering
service capabilities, an e-mail address, or both, that the candidate
and/or campaign treasurer will regularly monitor during the campaign.
For printed campaign material, the treasurer’s name and/or authority
line shall appear in such a manner that it is clearly legible. For
each electronic campaign material, including web pages, social media,
and robotic telephone calls, a message acknowledging that the treasurer
and candidate approve of the electronic campaign material shall be
provided in the electronic campaign material. The treasurer shall
provide the Board electronic evidence that this approval message was
included on each electronic campaign material.
A.
A report(s) of all moneys spent and received shall be filed with
the Aberdeen Board of Elections on a form provided by the Board. The
initial and subsequent reports shall be consecutively filed as follows:
(1)
No later than the fourth Tuesday immediately preceding any municipal
election;
(2)
No later than the second Friday immediately preceding any election
which shall be complete through and including the preceding Sunday;
(3)
No later than the third Tuesday after the municipal election;
(4)
No later than January 31 following a municipal election, the candidate shall file a final report with the Board. That report shall give a full account of how any surplus funds were disposed of in compliance with § 36-5B.[1]
[Amended 3-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-01]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection A(5), (6) and (7), all pertaining
to any cash balance or deficit, and which immediately and respectively
followed this subsection, were repealed 3-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-01.
B.
Within 60 days following the November 2015 Aberdeen municipal election,
each candidate in that election and in prior Aberdeen municipal elections,
shall do one of the following with respect to all campaign funds then
remaining after all campaign expenses have been paid and all loans
to the campaign have been repaid. As used in this subsection, "campaign
funds" includes all campaign funds contributed to the candidate for
the November 2015 election and for all prior Aberdeen municipal elections.
Remaining campaign funds shall be:
[Amended 8-8-2011 by Ord. No. 11-O-07; 3-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-01]
C.
Within 60 days following all subsequent Aberdeen municipal elections, all campaign funds then remaining after all campaign expenses have been paid and all loans to the campaign have been repaid shall be returned to contributors or donated as provided in Subsection B of this section.
[Amended 3-24-2014 by Ord. No. 14-O-01]
D.
Any candidate
elected to the office which he/she seeks who shall fail to file any
report required by this section to be filed before a general election
shall not be administered the oath of office or be permitted to serve
until such report has been filed.
[Added 3-24-2014 by Ord.
No. 14-O-01]
A.
A limitation of no more than $1,000 in cash, gifts or in-kind services
may be contributed by one person or organization to each individual
candidate. The contributor and any amount will be reported on the
candidate's financial report.
B.
No candidate shall accept any anonymous contribution in excess of
$5 in cash from any one individual or source, nor shall he/she accept
more than a total of $300 in cash in anonymous contributions in connection
with any election. Any anonymous contribution received by a candidate
in excess of the limits stated herein shall be promptly paid over
to the City to be used for any lawful purpose.
C.
Campaign
contributions may be used only for the following purposes:
[Added 3-24-2014 by Ord.
No. 14-O-01]
(1)
Printing
of signs.
(2)
Printing
of campaign materials.
(3)
Mailing
of campaign materials.
(4)
Costs
associated with production of electronic campaign materials.
(5)
Costs
associated with distributing electronic campaign materials.
(6)
Creation
and maintenance of campaign website and/or social media.
(7)
Meals
for campaign workers.
(8)
Renting
of tents and/or other supplies for rallies, and for election day poll-watching
locations.
(9)
Costs
associated with production and placing print media advertisements.
(10)
Costs
associated with outdoor advertising.
(11)
Costs
of garments for campaign workers.
(12)
Cost
of attending functions where exposure will aid in the candidate’s
election process.
[Amended 8-8-2011 by Ord. No. 11-O-07]
A.
Campaign signs should be removed within one week after the election.
B.
Campaign signs shall not be displayed on City property, State of
Maryland rights-of-way, or utility poles or in such a way as to present
a danger to person or property or to limit the visual field of drivers
or pedestrians and cannot impede public rights-of-way.
A.
On the day of the municipal election, candidates may not position
themselves, their supporters or their campaign signs closer than a
distance of 100 feet from the entrance to the polls, except for personal
voting. The Board of Elections shall be responsible for the demarcation
of this distance. No campaign materials shall be permitted within
the polling place on that date.
B.
The Board of Elections shall promulgate rules and regulations regarding
the conduct of elections not otherwise provided herein.
A.
Any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not
more than $1,000 or be imprisoned for not more than six months, or
both, in the discretion of the court.
[Amended 8-23-2010 by Ord. No. 10-O-12]
C.
In addition to the penalties above, the Board of Elections may seek
injunctive relief against any violation of the provisions of this
chapter.
Any and all matters concerning these provisions or the violation
thereof shall be under the duly authorized Board of Elections for
the City or as otherwise provided for in the City Charter. These provisions
are in addition to those found in the City Charter.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The Report of Campaign and Election Contributions
and Expenditures form which appeared at the end of this chapter was
deleted 8-8-2011 by Ord. No. 11-O-07.