Members of the city council elected to office in November 2020 or thereafter will be elected for a term of three (3) years. A councilor or mayor can serve a maximum of two (2) consecutive terms in the same office. However, in no event shall an elected official of the city be eligible to be elected to more than three (3) consecutive terms in any combination of elective office. After at least an 18-month absence from office, the person will be eligible to hold an elective office with the city again.
Members of the City Council who are serving consecutive terms which include one or more two-year terms, set by the Charter at the time of their election, are authorized to serve a maximum of three (3) consecutive terms in the same office. In no event will such an elected official of the city be eligible to be elected to more than four (4) consecutive terms in any combination of elective office. After at least an 18-month absence from office, the person will be eligible to hold an elective office with the city again.
A council member who is appointed or elected to fill an unexpired term will not have that partial term of office counted against them for purposes of the term limits set out in this section. Council members elected to a city council office who then resign in order to take another elected city council office will be deemed to have fully served the term for the office from which they resigned.
(Ordinance 32-2009, sec. 3, adopted 5/19/09, ref. adopted 5/9/09; Ordinance 35-2020, sec. 1(Meas. 9), adopted 6/16/20, ref. 11/3/20))
Notice of the election, and the polling places, shall be published by the city clerk as specified in the Texas election laws.
(Ordinance 34-2020, sec. 4(Meas. 2), adopted 6/16/20, ref. 11/3/20)
A candidate at an election for a place on the council or for mayor who shall receive a majority of all votes cast for the office for which he is a candidate shall be declared elected to such office. In the event any candidate for an office fails to receive a majority of all votes cast for all the candidates for such office at such election, the council shall order a runoff election, to be held in compliance with state law. The two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes for any such office in the first election shall be placed upon the ballot to be voted on in the runoff election.
(Ordinance 14-2006, sec. 2, adopted 2/21/06, ref. 5/13/06)
If by reason of their having received the same number of votes, it cannot be determined which of two (2) or more candidates has been elected, a decision between them shall be made in their presence by a flip of a coin under the direction of the city clerk.
In the event a runoff is required, and it cannot be determined from the vote which two (2) candidates shall advance to a runoff, because of a tie vote, the decision shall be made by lot.
(Ordinance 14-2006, sec. 2, adopted 2/21/06, ref. 5/13/06; Ordinance 34-2020, sec. 4(Meas. 1), adopted 6/16/20, ref. 11/3/20)
All elections held under this Charter, whether for the choice of candidates or for the submission of questions to the electors, shall be conducted in accordance with the Texas election laws; and except as otherwise provided in this Charter such election laws shall be applicable to, and control all such elections.
If a vacancy occurs in the office of mayor or in any other place on the city council for an unexpired term of 12 months or less, some eligible person may be chosen to fill the place by a majority vote of the remaining members. Any person chosen by the city council to fill a vacancy therein shall continue in office as a result of such choice only until the next regular municipal election, at which time some person shall be elected to fill the office. All other vacancies must be filled by special election as set out by Texas law.
(Ordinance 35-2020, sec. 1(Meas. 9), adopted 6/16/20, ref. 11/3/20)