No person shall be nominated to more than one elective Town public office or hold more than one elective Town public office at any one time.
[Amended 6-17-2010 by Ord. No. O-10-10; 12-19-2019 by Ord. No. O-19-16]
A.
Generally. Any person who is qualified to hold office pursuant to the Charter may have his or her name placed on the ballot as a candidate for Town Mayor or Town Council by filing a declaration of candidacy with the Town Clerk at least 56 days prior to the election.
B.
Required elements. A declaration of candidacy shall:
(1)
Be in writing;
(2)
Be signed by the candidate;
(3)
Be dated;
(4)
Provide the address of the legal residence of the candidate;
(5)
Identify the office (Mayor or Town Council) which the candidate wishes to seek through the election process; and
(6)
Identify the first name of the candidate, an initial letter of any middle name(s), and his or her surname as they appear on the candidate's birth certificate (all of these together hereinafter designated as the candidate's "given name"); provided, however, that if the candidate wishes to be identified on the ballot by a name other than the candidate's given name, the candidate may do so by filing with his or her declaration of candidacy a notarized affidavit attesting, under the penalty of perjury, that the candidate is generally known by that other name in either press accounts or in the candidate's everyday encounters with members of the community. Except for quotation marks to enclose a portion of a name, the use of symbols, titles, degrees or professional designations in a declaration of candidancy is prohibited.
C.
Certificate of candidacy. Pursuant to the Charter, the Board shall certify that each candidate who has filed a declaration of candidacy is qualified to hold elective office under the Charter at least 49 days prior to the election. The Board shall issue to each qualified candidate a certificate of candidacy, which shall be dated, shall state the candidate's name as it will appear on the ballot, and shall state that the Board has determined that the candidate is qualified under the Charter to hold the elective office that the candidate seeks. A copy of all certificates of candidacy shall be available for public inspection at Town Hall.
[Amended 6-17-2010 by Ord. No. O-10-10; 6-16-2016 by Ord. No. O-16-5; 12-19-2019 by Ord. No. O-19-16]
A.
Procedure for challenging a certificate of candidacy. Any person entitled to vote in Town elections, including any other candidate, may challenge the determination of the Board in issuing a certificate of candidacy, by filing a written challenge to candidacy, which must be signed by the challenger and must state, with particularity, all reasons why the challenged candidate is unqualified to hold elective office under the Charter. Such a challenge must be filed with the Town Clerk at least 42 days prior to the election for which the candidate is running. The Town Clerk shall immediately forward any challenge filed to the Board for a determination.
B.
Decision regarding a challenge. The Board shall conduct a public hearing on any challenge which shall be held no later than the 28th day before an election. The person whose candidacy is the subject of the challenge, and the person filing the challenge, shall both be given at least three days' prior written notice by mail of the date, time and place of the hearing. The person whose candidacy is the subject of the challenge shall also be mailed a copy of the challenge to candidacy. The challenger shall be strictly limited to challenging the candidacy on the basis of the issues raised in the written challenge to candidacy. The burden of proof shall lie with the person making the challenge. The challenger and the person challenged shall be permitted to be represented by legal counsel or a qualified voter. Decisions of the Board shall be in writing and shall be issued within four days of the hearing, and copies thereof shall be made available to the parties. If the Board upholds the challenge and determines candidate is not eligible, the Board will attempt to remove the name from ballot. If the Ballot is already sent to printer, the name will remain on the ballot and the Board will provide suitable notification to voters near voting booths on election day that the candidate has been disqualified.
[Amended 6-17-2010 by Ord. No. O-10-10]
A.
Authority line required.
(1)
Each item of campaign material shall contain, set apart from any other message, an authority line that states the name and address of the person responsible for the campaign material.
B.
Content of authority line.
(1)
Campaign material that is published or distributed in support of or in opposition to a candidate, but is not authorized by the candidate, shall include the following statement: "This message has been authorized and paid for by (name of payor or any organization affiliated with the payor). This message has not been authorized or approved by any candidate."
(2)
Campaign material that is published or distributed in support of or in opposition to multiple candidates, but is not authorized by all of the candidates mentioned therein, shall include the following statement: "This message has been authorized and paid for by (name of payor or any organization affiliated with the payor). This message has been authorized or approved only by (name of candidate or candidates who have approved or authorized the material) and has not been authorized or approved by any other candidate."
[Added 7-18-2024 by Ord. No. O-24-12]
A.
Each candidate filing a declaration of candidacy shall file within five days of receiving any campaign contribution a campaign finance report pursuant to the following:
(1)
Reports will contain all contributions and/or loans received except those made by the candidate personally.
(2)
Identify the contributor by name, address and total amount of contribution.
(3)
Each disbursement/expenditure relating to campaign contributions received must be listed separately on any report filed and must include the name and address of the payee, the date of disbursement and the purpose of disbursement.
B.
Contribution limitations.
(1)
Candidates will only accept contributions from the Town of Chesapeake Beach registered individual voters. The Election Board may provide each candidate with a list of Town registered voters.
(2)
Candidates will not accept total contributions in excess of $500 from any single person.
(3)
If a candidate does not accept any campaign contributions, and only uses their own personal funds, then this candidate does not need to file a campaign finance report.
C.
Campaign finance reports shall be posted on the Town website and shall be public records made available for public review.
D.
Enforcement and penalties. The Board of Elections shall have the authority to enforce provisions of § 22-28.1, Campaign finance reporting requirements, per § 22-74A and when warranted enforce the following penalties:
(1)
No candidate may be sworn into office until all required reports are filed, violations are corrected, and assessed penalties are paid in full.
(2)
The Board of Elections will attempt to notify the voters of issues where the funding source is unknown or from a nonregistered Town voter.
(3)
The Board of Elections may impose a fine for the violation of this section in the amount of $500 and $100 per day as a municipal infraction until the violation is corrected.
E.
Definitions. A "campaign contribution" or "contribution" shall mean the gift, transfer or promise of a gift or transfer of money or other thing of value or the donation of any services to any candidate or a candidate's representative, to promote or assist in the promotion of the success or defeat of any candidate or question submitted to a vote at any election.