Every person who (a) is a citizen of the United States, (b) is at least eighteen (18) years of age, (c) has resided within the corporate limits of the Town for thirty (30) days immediately preceding the Town election, and (d) is registered to vote in the Town in accordance with provisions of this Charter, is a qualified voter of the Town.
(a) 
There shall be a Board of Supervisors of Elections consisting of three members, each representing one of the three Wards, who shall be recommended by the Councilmember of each respective ward and appointed by the Mayor on or before the first Monday of February of each year. The terms of members of the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall begin on the first Monday in February in the year in which they are appointed and shall run for two (2) years. The Board shall appoint one of its members as Chairperson. Vacancies on the Board shall be filled by the Mayor with the approval of the Council for the remainder of the unexpired term. Members of the Board of Elections may be reappointed by the Mayor.
(b) 
Members of the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall be at least 25 years of age, shall have resided in the Town for at least two years, and shall be qualified voters of the Town pursuant to Section 701 of this Charter. No member of the Board shall hold or be a candidate for any elective office during his or her term of office. Compensation of the members of the Board, if any, shall be determined by the Council.
Any member of the Board of Supervisors of Elections may be removed by the Mayor, with the approval of the Council, for inefficiency, malfeasance, misfeasance, nonfeasance, misconduct in office, or insubordination. Before removal, the member of the Board to be removed shall be given a written copy of the charges and shall have a public hearing before the Council, if a hearing is requested by the member of the Board to be removed, within ten days after receiving the written copy of the charges.
The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall be in charge of receiving nominations, certifying candidates, conducting all Town elections, and certifying election results. The Board may appoint election clerks or other agents, volunteers or employees to assist in its duties.
At least thirty (30) days prior to each Town election, the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall provide notice of the upcoming election in the Town newsletter and by posting a notice thereof in some public place or places in the Town.
(a) 
Registration by the Prince George's County Board of Elections shall be deemed registration for Town elections, provided that the person so registered meets the voter qualifications enumerated in this Charter. The Town Board of Supervisors of Elections shall accept the list of registered voters provided by the Prince George's County Board of Elections as a valid registration list for the Town.
(b) 
No person shall be entitled to vote in a Town election unless he/she is duly registered to vote at least thirty (30) days prior to that election.
If any person is aggrieved by any election result or other action of the Board of Supervisors of Elections, such person may appeal to the Council. Any decision or action of the Council upon such appeals may be appealed to the Circuit Court for Prince George's County within thirty (30) days after the date of the Council action.
Persons shall be nominated for elective office in the Town by filing a nominating petition with the Town Clerk at least thirty (30) calendar days prior to the election. A nominating petition for Mayor shall be signed by at least twenty (20) qualified voters in the Town and a nominating petition for Councilmember shall be signed by at least ten (10) qualified voters in the Town. The Town Clerk shall validate all nominating petitions and then shall refer the validated petitions to the Board of Supervisors of Elections. The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall certify all qualified nominees as candidates for the Town general election at least twenty (20) calendar days prior to the election. No person shall file for nomination for more than one elective Town public office at any one time.
(a) 
On the first Monday of May in odd-numbered years, the qualified voters of the Town shall elect a Mayor and one person to serve as Councilmember (Council seat 1). On the first Monday of May in even-numbered years, the qualified voters of the Town shall elect two persons to serve as Councilmembers (Council seats 1 and 2). (Res. No. 2008-1, 3-25-2008)[1]
[1]
Note: Thus in Res. No. 2008-1, effective 3-25-2008.
It shall be the duty of 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 or other voting system. The ballots and/or voting machines or system 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. The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall keep the polls open from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on election days, or for longer hours if deemed necessary.
(a) 
Any qualified voter registered to vote in any election of the Town may vote by absentee ballot if the voter is unable to cast a ballot during regularly scheduled polling hours on election day by reason of physical condition or necessary absence. It shall be the duty of the Board of Supervisors of Elections to transmit and receive applications for absentee ballots and to provide ballots, envelopes, instructions, and printed matter to enable absentee voters to vote in a manner prescribed by law.
(b) 
A qualified voter desiring to vote at a Town election as an absentee voter shall make application to the Board of Supervisors of Elections in writing, which application must be received no later than the Monday preceding the election. The application must be signed by the applicant or, if he or she is unable to sign, must bear the mark of the applicant and the signatures of two witnesses.
(c) 
To be counted, the absentee ballot must be (1) returned to the Town Board of Supervisors of Elections, appropriately signed and sealed, by the close of the polls on election day, or (2) if mailed, postmarked on or before the election day and received by the Board of Supervisors of Elections no later than 5:00 p.m. on the next business day following election day.
(a) 
All Special Town elections shall be conducted by the Board of Supervisors of Elections in the same manner and with the same personnel, as far as practicable, as regular Town elections.
(b) 
Whenever required by this Charter, it shall be the duty of the Board of Supervisors of Elections to order a special election at a date not less than thirty (30) days nor more than sixty (60) days from the date an office is declared vacant or the date an election results in a tie vote.
(c) 
Following the special election, any Mayor or Councilmember elected pursuant to this section shall take office at the next meeting of the Council.
(a) 
Within twenty-four (24) hours after the closing of the polls, the Board of Supervisors of Elections shall determine the vote cast for each candidate or question and shall certify the results of the election to the Clerk who shall record the results in the minutes of the Council. The candidate for Mayor with the highest number of votes in the election shall be declared elected as Mayor. The candidates for Councilmembers with the highest number of votes in the election shall be declared elected as Councilmembers.
(b) 
In the event of a tie between any candidates for Mayor or Council in which the tie has a bearing on who shall be declared elected, those candidates shall participate in a special election pursuant to Section 712 of this Charter.
The Board of Supervisors of Elections shall be responsible for preserving all ballots used in any Town election for at least six months 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 Town elections and for the prevention of fraud in connection therewith, and for a recount of ballots in case of doubt or fraud.
(a) 
In the case of a vacancy on the Council for any reason, the Council shall appoint some qualified person to fill such vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term provided the vacancy is for less than one hundred eighty (180) days. If the unexpired term is equal to or more than one hundred eighty (180) days, a special election shall be held as prescribed in Section 712 of this Charter.
(b) 
In the case of a vacancy in the office of Mayor for any reason, a special election shall be called to fill the vacancy as prescribed in Section 712 of this Charter. In the case of any such vacancy which occurs less than ninety (90) days prior to the expiration of the term, the vacancy for the unexpired term shall be filled at the next general election.