[Amended 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 07-O-06; 9-11-2012 by Ord. No. 12-O-07; 9-11-2018 by Ord. No. 18-O-09; 2-26-2019 by Ord. No. 19-O-03; 3-23-2021 by Ord. No. 21-O-04]
Polling places and hours for election day shall be designated
by the Supervisors of Elections with the approval of Mayor and Council.
The polling places and hours for one or more early voting days shall
be designated by the Supervisors of Elections with the approval of
Mayor and Council. A voter may vote at a designated polling place
on the day of the election or at a designated early voting polling
place. All qualified voters who are waiting in line to vote at the
time of the official closing of the polls shall be permitted to vote.
[Amended 1-11-2005 by Ord. No. 04-O-11; 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 07-O-06; 9-11-2018 by Ord. No. 18-O-09; 3-23-2021 by Ord. No. 21-O-04; 4-11-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-04]
A. Applicability
of state law. The procedures and provisions of §§ 9-301,
9-302, 9-303, excluding § 9-303(c), 9-306, excluding § 9-306(b)(2)
and (3), 9-307, 9-308, 9-309, 9-310 and 11-302 of the Elections Article
of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended, are hereby incorporated,
with the exception that those terms referring to "Baltimore City"
or "county" or "state" or an agency, board or department thereof shall
be construed to refer to the City of College Park or its counterpart
agency, board or department, as the case may be. Mail-in voting is
referred to as absentee voting in the Maryland Constitution, the Annotated
Code of Maryland, and the Code of Maryland Regulations.
B. Qualifications
for absentee/mail-in voting. Any qualified voter registered to vote
in the elections of the City of College Park is entitled to vote by
absentee/mail-in ballot.
C. Applications
for mail-in ballots.
(1) Application. An application for a mail-in ballot signed by the voter
may be made:
(a) On a form produced by the Supervisors of Elections and supplied to
the voter on request; or
(b) On a form provided under federal law; or
(c) In a written request that includes:
[1]
The voter's name and residence address, and email address if
applicable;
[2]
The voter's date of birth;
[3]
The address to which the ballot is to be mailed, if different
from the residence address;
[5]
Maryland driver's license or ID card number.
[6]
Last four digits of social security number.
[7]
Date on which the voter moved to the current address.
(d) A
PDF or facsimile of the signed ballot application may be submitted
electronically.
(2) Deadline for receipt of application. An application for a mail-in
ballot must be received by the Supervisors of Elections at least 10
business days preceding the election, at the time specified by the
Supervisors of Elections.
(3) Application
for absentee non-mail ballot.
(a) Beginning
10 business days preceding the election, through the last business
day before Election Day, a registered voter or the voter's duly authorized
agent may apply in person for an absentee ballot at the City Clerk's
office.
(b) A
special application for an absentee ballot issued under this subsection
shall be supplied by the Supervisors of Elections or the City Clerk
to the voter or the voter's duly authorized agent.
(c) After
review of the application, if the Supervisors of Elections find that
the voter qualifies for absentee voting, the City Clerk shall issue
an absentee ballot to the voter or the voter's duly authorized agent.
The ballot can be voted at the City Clerk's office or in an authorized
ballot drop box.
(4) Qualified
voters who have opted to receive a mail-in ballot for federal or State
of Maryland elections will automatically receive a mail-in ballot
for City elections without the necessity of filing an application.
[Amended 4-14-2009 by Ord. No. 09-O-02; 3-23-2021 by Ord. No. 21-O-04]
In the event that an election results in a tie
vote for Mayor or Council member, a runoff election shall be conducted
as provided in the Charter. The same rules and procedures that apply
to regular elections shall apply to runoff elections, with the following
additional provisions:
A. The election officials appointed for the election
that resulted in the tie vote shall continue to serve in that capacity
for the runoff election.
B. Notice of the runoff election shall be given in the
usual and customary methods in use by the City and, at minimum, in
a newspaper having general circulation in the City.
C. The voter registration books from the election that
resulted in the tie vote shall remain closed until 15 days following
the runoff election.
[Amended 1-11-2005 by Ord. No. 04-O-11; 9-11-2018 by Ord. No. 18-O-09]
A. No
person shall canvass, electioneer or post any political matter, to
include information that advocates for or against any candidate or
measure on the ballot, in any polling place or within the boundaries
of the parking lot adjacent to the building where ballots are cast
or on public property within 100 feet of the entrance to the polling
place; provided, however, that the Supervisors of Elections shall
designate an area of sufficient size within 100 feet of the entrance
to the polls for electioneering and the dissemination of city election-related
information. The designated area will be located as close as practicable
to the poll entrance but shall not impede access to the polling place
and will not require any person to traverse the location in order
to access the polling place. Polling places and voting stations shall
be frequently cleaned to ensure the removal of candidate literature
and paraphernalia.
B. The provisions of §§ 16-201, 16-202, 16-203, 16-204, 16-205, 16-302, 16-303, 16-304, 16-501, 16-601, 16-701, 16-801, 16-802, 16-803, 16-804, 13-601, and 13-602(a)(1) through (3) of the Election Law Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended, are hereby made applicable to elections conducted in the City of College Park, except that violations shall be considered municipal infractions and are punishable as provided in §
38-9 of the City Code and Chapter
110, Fees and Penalties.