A.
Regular Elections. The regular City election shall
be held on the first (1st) Tuesday in April of each year or on such
date as designated by the election authorities.
B.
Qualified Voters. All citizens qualified by the
Constitution and laws of the State of Missouri to vote in the City
and who satisfy the requirements for registration prescribed by law
shall be qualified voters of the City within the meaning of this Charter.
C.
Conduct of Elections. Except as otherwise provided
by this Charter, the provisions of the general election laws of the
State of Missouri shall apply to elections held under this Charter.
All elections provided for by the Charter shall be conducted by the
election authorities established by law. For the conduct of City elections,
for the prevention of fraud in such elections and for the recount
of ballots in cases of doubt or fraud, the Council shall adopt by
ordinance all regulations which it considers desirable, consistent
with law and this Charter, and the election authorities may adopt,
and if they adopt, shall publicize further regulations consistent
with law and this Charter and the regulations of the Council.
A.
Sponsors. Any qualified voter of the City may be
nominated for the City Council by petition of ten qualified voters,
who shall be designated as his sponsors. (Sponsors for a candidate
for Ward Councilman must be residents of the Ward for which the candidate
is nominated.) No voter shall sign more than one (1) petition for
the office of Mayor (at large and one (1) petition for the office
of Ward Councilman) and, if a voter signs more than one, his signature
shall be void. The signatures shall be executed in ink or indelible
pencil. Each signer shall indicate next to his signature the date
of his signing and the place of his residence, giving the street and
number or other description sufficient to identify it. The signed
petitions shall be filed with the election authorities not earlier
than ninety (90) days or later than forty (40) days before the election.
B.
Acceptance; Deposit. No nominating petition shall
be accepted unless accompanied by a signed acceptance of the nomination
and a deposit by the candidate of ten dollars ($10.00). The deposit
shall be returned to the candidate if: (1) He becomes ineligible,
or (2) He files a notice of withdrawal with the election authorities
not later than the last day for filing nominating petitions; otherwise,
the deposit shall be paid into the City Treasury.
C.
Procedure After Filing. Within seven (7) days after
the filing of a nominating petition, the election authorities shall
notify the candidate and the person who filed the petition whether
or not it satisfies the requirements prescribed by this Charter. If
a petition is found insufficient, the election authorities shall return
it immediately to the person who filed it with a statement certifying
wherein it is insufficient and return to the candidate the deposit
of money. Within the regular time for filing petitions, a new petition
may be filed for the same candidate. The election authorities shall
keep on file all petitions found sufficient at least until the expiration
of the term for which the candidates are nominated in those petitions.
Names on Ballots. The full names of all candidates
nominated for membership in City Council, except those who have withdrawn,
died or become ineligible, shall be printed on the official ballots
without party designation or symbol in the order petitions were filed
with election authorities. If two (2) or more candidates have the
same surname or surnames so similar as to be likely to cause confusion,
their residence addressees shall be printed with their names on the
ballot.
A regularly nominated candidate shall be entitled, upon written
application to the election authorities at least seven (7) days before
the election, and upon approval thereof, to appoint two (2) persons
to represent him as watchers and challengers at each polling place
where voters may cast their ballots for him. A person so appointed
shall have the rights and privileges prescribed for watchers and challengers
by or under the general election laws of the State of Missouri. The
watchers and challengers may exercise their rights throughout the
voting and until the ballots have been counted.
Number of Votes. Every voter shall be entitled
to vote for as many candidates of the City Council as there are members
to be elected from the Ward in which the voter resides and to vote
for one (1) candidate for Mayor at large. Candidates receiving the
greatest number of votes shall be declared elected. All ties shall
be decided by lot in the presence of the candidates concerned and
under the direction of the election authorities.
An ordinance or Charter amendment to be voted on by the City
shall be presented for voting by ballot title. The ballot title of
a measure may differ from its legal title and shall be a clear, concise
statement describing the substance of the measure without argument
or prejudice. Below the ballot title shall appear the following question:
"Shall the above described (ordinance) (amendment) be adopted?" Immediately
below such question shall appear, in the following order, the words
"Yes" and "No".
The Council may provide for the use of mechanical or other devices
for voting or counting the votes not inconsistent with law.
If for any purpose relating to a general or City election or
to candidates or issues involved in such an election, any organization,
group or person requests a list of qualified voters of the City, the
department, office or agency which has custody of that list shall
either permit the organization, group or person to copy the voters'
names and addresses from the list or furnish a copy of the list.
A.
Number of Wards. There shall be two (2) City Council
Wards.
B.
Ward Redistricting Commission. The Council shall
appoint five (5) qualified voters, determined from the registration
from the last statewide general election, who shall comprise the Ward
Redistricting Commission. The voters chosen shall not be employed
by the City in any other capacity.
C.
Report; Specifications. By the first (1st) day of
October of every tenth (10th) year from the adoption of this Charter,
the Ward Redistricting Commission shall file with the City Clerk a
report containing a recommended plan for adjustment to the Council
Ward boundaries to comply with these specifications.
1.
Each Ward shall be formed of compact, contiguous territory,
and its boundary lines shall follow the center lines of streets.
2.
Each Ward shall contain as nearly as possible the same number
of citizens, determined from the last census, but Wards shall not
differ in population by more than ten percent (10%).
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The report shall include a map and description of the Wards
recommended and shall be drafted as a proposed ordinance. Once filed
with the Clerk the report shall be treated as an ordinance introduced
by a Council Member.
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D.
Procedure. The procedure for the Council's consideration of the report shall be the same as for other ordinances, provided that if a summary of the ordinance is published pursuant to Section 2.13, it must include both the map and the description of the recommended Wards. The Council shall adopt the ordinance at least ninety (90) days before the next regular City election with or without amendment.
E.
Effect of Enactment. The new Council Wards and boundaries,
as of the date of enactment, shall supersede previous Council Wards
and boundaries for all the purposes of the next regular City Election,
including nominations. The new Wards and boundaries shall supersede
previous Wards and boundaries for all other purposes as of the date
on which all Councilmen elected at the regular City election take
office.
The City of St. John shall be divided into two (2) wards described
as follows:
Ward I. Ward I shall consist of that entire
area of the Village of St. John lying east of a line beginning at
the intersection of Tudor and Marshall Avenue at the southern limits
of the Village of St. John, thence northeastwardly along the center
line of Marshall Avenue to the eastern intersection of Marshall Avenue
and St. Charles Rock Road, thence northwestwardly along the center
line of St. Charles Rock Road to the western intersection of Marshall
Avenue and St. Charles Rock Road, thence northwardly along the center
line of Marshall Avenue to the intersection of Marshall Avenue and
North Avenue, thence eastwardly along the center line of North Avenue
to the intersection of North Avenue and McKibbon Road, thence northwardly
along the center line of McKibbon Road to the northern Village limits.
Ward II. Ward II shall consist of that entire
area of the Village of St. John lying west of a line beginning at
the intersection of Tudor and Marshall Avenue at the southern limits
of the Village of St. John, thence northeastwardly along the center
line of Marshall Avenue to the eastern intersection of Marshall Avenue
and St. Charles Rock Road, thence northwestwardly along the center
line of St. Charles Rock Road to the western intersection of Marshall
Avenue and St. Charles Rock Road, thence northwardly along the center
line of Marshall Avenue to the intersection of Marshall Avenue and
North Avenue, thence eastwardly along the center line of North Avenue
to the intersection of North Avenue and McKibbon Road, thence northwardly
along the center line of McKibbon Road to the northern Village limits.
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