[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;
[4]
Telephone number;
[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.
A.
Contests concerning voting or the validity of any
ballot in any election shall be decided by the Supervisors of Elections.
B.
No ballot nor the results of any election shall be
rejected except by the unanimous vote of the Supervisors who are present.
[Amended 4-14-2009 by Ord. No. 09-O-02]
C.
Any candidate or voter who wishes to contest the results
of an election or any matter relating to the validity of a ballot
shall give written notice to the City Clerk for the Supervisors of
Elections no later than three working days after the date the results
of the election are certified to the Council. The written notice shall
be signed and made under oath, under the penalty for false statement
provided under the City Code.[1] The notice shall include a complete statement of all facts
on which the candidate or voter relies to support such election contest.
D.
Upon receiving a notice of election contest, the City
Clerk shall immediately refer the notice to the Supervisors of Elections.
The Mayor, Council and all candidates potentially affected by the
contest shall be notified that an election contest has been submitted.
E.
The Supervisors shall conduct a factual investigation
of the contest and shall decide the contest no later than seven days
after the receipt of the notice of election contest by the City Clerk.
Should the Supervisors fail to render a decision within seven days,
the election contest shall be deemed denied. A successful candidate
whose election is contested pursuant to this section shall not be
sworn in until the contest is approved or denied.
F.
The Mayor, Council, all candidates who were potentially
affected by the contest and the person who submitted the election
contest shall be immediately notified of the Supervisors' decision.
The Supervisors shall provide the City Clerk with a written statement
of their decision, and such statement shall be kept on file by the
City Clerk as a matter of public record.
G.
Any candidate or voter aggrieved by any decision or
action of the Supervisors of Elections shall have the right to appeal
such decision or action to the Circuit Court of Prince George's County,
and jurisdiction to hear and determine such appeals is hereby conferred
upon the Circuit Court. Appeals shall be taken by way of petition
filed with the Circuit Court within five days from the date of the
decision of the Supervisors and shall be heard de novo and without
a jury by the Circuit Court as soon as possible. The decision or action
of the Supervisors of Elections shall be implemented by the city pending
a determination of such appeal by the Circuit Court.
[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.
A.
At the first regular Council meeting after the official
canvass after each election, the Supervisors of Elections shall officially
report the election results to the Mayor and Council.
[Amended 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 07-O-06]
B.
Write-in votes for Mayor or Councilperson shall not
be accepted or tallied by the Election Supervisors.
C.
In the event that there is no provision in this chapter
or the Charter pertaining to a given aspect of elections, then prior
city practice or custom shall govern.
D.
Election records and documents shall be maintained
by the Board of Election Supervisors until the results of the next
regular election have been certified and the challenge period expired.
The City Clerk shall maintain all City election records in perpetuity.
[Added 7-10-2007 by Ord. No. 07-O-06; amended 4-14-2009 by Ord. No. 09-O-02]
