[Amended 5-13-1986, effective 6-22-1986]
[Amended 12-12-1989 by Res. No. 89-1,
effective 1-31-1990; 9-8-1998 by Res. No. 1998-5, effective 10-28-1998; 8-26-2009 by Res. No. 2009-18, effective 10-6-2009]
A.
The Town shall provide for the registration of the names of all the persons who possess the qualifications prescribed in this Article IV to be qualified voters, which registration shall be conclusive evidence to the Town Clerk of the right of every person, thus registered, to vote in any election held in the Town; but no person shall vote at any election held in the Town unless his or her name appears in the list of registered voters under the universal voter registration system for Talbot County, Maryland; the names of all persons who have the qualifications prescribed in the § C-23B of this Article IV, and who are not disqualified under this article, shall be added to the list of qualified voters. Registration shall be permanent until a registrant becomes disqualified.
B.
The Town Clerk shall not maintain a separate registration
for voters who do not wish to be registered for county, state or national
elections through the universal voter registration system.
C.
Voters shall be removed from the registry of the universal
registration system provided by Talbot County, Maryland in accordance
with state law. Notice of this action and the rights of persons affected
by such removal shall be in accordance with state law.
D.
A voter whose registration has been cancelled under
this section shall not thereafter be eligible to vote except by registering
again as provided in this article.
E.
(Reserved)
F.
No person shall be permitted to register to vote in
a Town election during the period between the close of regular business
hours on the fifth Friday preceding the date of that Town election
and opening of regular business hours on the second Tuesday after
the date of that Town election.
[Amended 12-12-1989 by Res. No. 89-1,
effective 1-31-1990]
B.
Qualifications. The qualifications of voters are the
following, each one of which is applicable to every voter:
(1)
Citizen of United States;
(2)
Age of 18 years or older on or before the day of the
next Town election;
(3)
Resident of State of Maryland on the fifth Monday
preceding the next Town election;
(4)
Resident of the Town as of the time for closing of
registration, next preceding the Town election;
(6)
Not convicted of buying or selling votes.
C.
Conviction of crime. No person shall be registered
as a qualified voter if he or she has been convicted of theft or other
infamous crime, unless he or she has been pardoned, or, in connection
with the first such conviction only, he or she has concluded any sentence
imposed pursuant to that conviction, including any period of probation
imposed by virtue of parole or otherwise in lieu of a sentence or
part of a sentence.
D.
Persons under guardianship. No person shall be registered
as a qualified voter if he or she is under guardianship for mental
disability.
E.
Every qualified voter of the Town is entitled to vote
in all Town Elections.
A.
Any qualified voter whose physical disability confines
him or her to a hospital or causes him or her to be confined to bed
and permanently prevents him or her from being present to register
or reregister to vote shall be allowed to register or reregister by
casting his or her absentee ballot as provided by ordinance.
B.
Any registered voter in the Town of St. Michaels may
vote by absentee ballot if he or she meets the requirements and conditions
of Maryland Code (1957) Article 33, Title 27 (Absentee Voting), as
amended, unless otherwise provided by this Charter or ordinance of
the Town.
The Town Clerk shall be the supervisor of all
elections.
[Amended 12-12-1989 by Res. No. 89-1,
effective 1-31-1990]
The Town Clerk shall be in charge of the registration
of voters, nominations, and all Town elections. The Commission may
appoint election clerks or other employees to assist the Town Clerk
in any way in his or her duties. In addition, registration of voters
may be accomplished in accordance with and pursuant to Maryland Code
(1957), Article 33, § 3-2, as amended, by, through or under
the authority of the Talbot County Board of Elections. In the event
that this section is not effective on or before January 1, 1990, as
required by Maryland Code (1957), Article 33, § 3-2, as
amended, then voters registered by the Talbot County Board of Elections
pursuant to state law on or after January 1, 1990, but before this
section of the St. Michaels Charter becomes effective, shall nevertheless
be validly registered for Town elections. The Town Clerk may conduct
universal voter registration if authorized by the Talbot County Board
of Elections.
The Town Clerk shall not be a candidate for
any elective office during his or her appointment as Town Clerk.
[Amended 12-12-1989 by Res. No. 89-1,
effective 1-31-1990]
A.
It shall be the duty of the Town Clerk to give public
notice of the hours and places for voter registration, of any changes
of such hours and places, and when supplemental registration is authorized,
to give notice of the hours and places thereof.
B.
The Town Clerk shall give public notice of every Town
election by publishing at least once each week for two consecutive
weeks, the first of which publication shall not be more than 21 days
before the election and the last of which publications shall not be
less than seven days before the election, said advertisement to be
published in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the
Town, and by posting a notice thereof on the bulletin board in the
Town office.
If any person is aggrieved by the action of
the Town Clerk in refusing to register or in striking off the name
of any person or by any other action, he or she may appeal to the
Commission. Any decision or action of the Commission upon such appeals
may be appealed by the person so aggrieved to the Circuit Court for
Talbot County in the same manner as provided for in the case of appeals
regarding the election laws of the State of Maryland.
[Amended 9-8-1998 by Res. No. 1998-5,
effective 10-28-1998]
A.
Each person seeking elective office in a Town election
must be a registered voter of the Town, and shall file a certificate
of candidacy signed by the candidate. Such certificate shall state
the following:
(1)
The office for which the candidate is seeking election;
(2)
The name of the candidate as he or she wishes it to
appear on the ballot (to include at least one given name, the initial
letter of all other given names, and the surname of the candidate,
but without nicknames, titles, degrees and designations);
(3)
The principal residential address of the candidate;
(4)
A statement that as of the date the certificate is
submitted the candidate is a registered voter of the Town and that
as of the date of the election the candidate will meet all of the
qualifications required by this Charter for a registered voter of
the Town;
(5)
A statement that as of the date of the election the
candidate will meet all of the qualifications required by this Charter
for the elective office for which he or she is a candidate; and
(6)
Disclosure of any action involving a conflict of interest
between the candidate and the Town.
B.
A certificate of candidacy shall be received by the
Town Clerk before 4:30 p.m. on the fifth Friday preceding the date
of the Town election to which the certificate applies. No person shall
file for candidacy to more than one elective Town public office or
hold more than one elective Town public office at any one time.
[Amended 9-12-1995, effective 10-23-1995; 8-23-2006 by Res. No.
2006-20, effective 10-12-2006; 4-1-2020 by Res. No. 2020-01, effective 4-1-2020]
A.
All regular
elections of the Town shall be held on the first Monday in May in
even-numbered years. Beginning with the election to be held in May
1996, and every four years thereafter, three Commissioners shall be
elected for terms of four years each. Beginning with the election
in May 1998, and every four years thereafter, two Commissioners shall
be elected for terms of four years each. In the case of some vacancies,
Commissioners may be elected for terms of two years as provided in
§ C-35 of this Charter.
B.
When a state
of emergency has been declared by the Governor of Maryland, Talbot
County, Maryland, and/or the Commissioners pursuant to Title 14 of
the Public Safety Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, the Commissioners
may, by resolution, postpone any regular or special election if the
Commissioners find that such postponement is necessary to protect
the public health, safety, or welfare and to conduct the election
in a safe, orderly, and efficient manner. Any election postponed hereunder
shall be postponed until such time as the emergency conditions giving
rise to the state of emergency have abated or such election can be
conducted in a safe, orderly, and efficient manner and will not endanger
the public health, safety, or welfare. The Town Clerk shall give public
notice of a resolution postponing any regular or special election
by publishing once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper
of general circulation in the Town, with the first publication occurring
as soon as practicable following the Commissioners' adoption of the
resolution.
It is the duty of the Town Clerk 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.
The ballots and/or voting machines 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 Town Clerk shall keep the polls open
from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on election days or for such longer hours
as the Commissioners may require by ordinance.[1]
Immediately after the closing of the polls,
the Town Clerk shall determine the number of votes cast for each candidate
or question and shall certify the results of the election to the Commissioners
of the Town, who shall record the results in the minutes of the Commission.
Those candidates for Commissioners with the highest number of votes
in the general election shall be declared elected as Commissioners;
three Commissioners to be elected in 1988 and every four years thereafter;
two Commissioners to be elected in 1986 and every four years thereafter.
All ballots used in any Town election shall
be preserved for at least six months from the date of the election.
[Amended 8-23-2006 by Res. No. 2006-20, effective 10-12-2006; 8-26-2009 by Res. No. 2009-18, effective 10-6-2009; 4-1-2020 by Res. No. 2020-01, effective 4-1-2020]
A.
In case of a vacancy that occurs more than 90 days
before the next regular election of Commissioners:
(1)
The Commissioners shall appoint some qualified person
to fill the vacancy, who shall enjoy and exercise the same voting
rights and privileges as those enjoyed and exercised by Commissioners
elected to office.
(a)
Appointments shall be made upon a favorable vote by
a majority of the remaining Commission members. The result of the
vote shall be recorded in the minutes of the Commission.
(b)
The term of a Commissioner so appointed shall expire
on the second Wednesday in the month of June following the next regular
election of Commissioners, except as set forth in §§ C-5
and C-31B of this Charter.
(c)
If the original term of the vacancy filled by appointment
does not expire following the next regular election, the remaining
two years of the term shall be placed on the ballot and shall be filled
by the winning candidate with the least number of votes.
(2)
If the Commission fails to make an appointment within
30 days following the occurrence of the vacancy, the Town Clerk shall
call a special election to fill the vacancy, to be held not sooner
than 90 days and not later than 120 days following the occurrence.
The special election shall be governed by the provisions of this Charter.
(a)
If a regular election will occur during the period
from 90 days to 120 days following the occurrence, the special election
shall be held with the regular election.
(b)
If a vacancy is filled by special election, the newly
elected Commissioner shall serve for the remainder of the vacant term,
even in the event that the term may extend beyond the next regular
election of Commissioners.
B.
In the case of a vacancy that occurs 90 days or less
before the next regular election of Commissioners, the vacancy shall
remain unfilled until the election. If the vacancy was for a term
not expiring immediately following the election, the winning candidate
with the least number of votes shall fill the remaining term of two
years.
The Commission, in determining its own rules,
shall specify what constitutes an automatic vacancy, and it shall
be recorded in the Commission's journal for public inspection.
Any Commissioner of the Town who, during his
or her term of office, is convicted of or enters a plea of nolo contendere
to any crime which is a felony, or which is a misdemeanor related
to his or her public duties and responsibilities and involves moral
turpitude for which the penalty may be incarceration in any penal
institution, shall be suspended by operation of law without pay or
benefits from his or her office as Commissioner of the Town. During
and for the period of suspension from said elected office, such suspension
shall be considered a vacancy in the elective office which shall be
temporarily filled in accordance with the provisions of the Charter.
If the conviction or plea of nolo contendere becomes final, after
judicial review or otherwise, such Commissioner shall be removed from
office by operation of law, and the office shall be deemed vacant
and shall be filled in accordance with the terms of this Charter.
If the conviction of the Commissioner is reversed or overturned, the
Commissioner shall be reinstated by operation of law to his or her
elective office for the remainder, if any, of the elective term of
office during which he or she was suspended or removed, and all pay
and benefits shall be restored.
The Commission has 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.
Any officer or employee of the Town who 1) fails
to perform any duty required of him or her under the provisions of
this article of the Charter or any ordinances passed thereunder; 2)
in any manner willfully or corruptly violates any of the provisions
of this article or any ordinances passed thereunder; or (3) willfully
or corruptly does anything which will or will tend to affect fraudulently
any registration, nomination or Town election is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Any officer or employee of the Town government who is convicted of
a misdemeanor under the provisions of this section shall immediately
upon conviction thereof cease to hold such office or employment.
