Section 4.01 Electors.
Any person who is a resident of the City, who has qualified as an elector of this State, and who registers in the manner prescribed by law shall be an elector of the City.
Section 4.02 Nonpartisan Elections.
All elections of the Office of City Commission shall be conducted on a nonpartisan basis without any designation of political party affiliation.
Section 4.03 Qualifying.
Candidates for the Office of City Commission shall qualify by filing a written notice of candidacy with the City Clerk at such time and in such manner as may be prescribed by ordinance. Each candidate shall designate which seat he or she is qualifying for at the time of qualification.
Section 4.04 Form of Ballots.
The City Commission shall prescribe the form of the ballot by ordinance, including the method of listing candidates for City Commission election. A Charter or ordinance amendment to be voted on by the electors of the City shall be presented for voting by ballot title. The ballot title of a measure may differ from its legal title and shall be a clear, concise statement describing the substance of the measure without argument or prejudice and shall be styled in such a manner that a “yes” vote will indicate approval of the proposal and a “no” vote will indicate rejection. Below the ballot title shall appear the following question: “Shall the above [Charter amendment] [ordinance] be adopted?” Immediately below such question shall appear in the following order, the words “Yes for Approval” and also the words “No for Rejection” with a sufficient blank space thereafter for the placing of the symbol “X” to indicate the voter’s choice, if voting machines are not used.
Section 4.05 Schedule and Notice of Elections.
(a) Regular. The regular election of Commissioners shall be held on the same date as the regular state and federal general election or as otherwise permitted by state law.
(b) Regular unexpired term. An election to fill an unexpired term shall be held at the same time as the regular annual election in accordance with paragraph (a) of this section.
(c) Special. Special municipal elections shall be held in the same manner as the regular annual election except that the City Commission, by ordinance, shall fix the time of holding such special elections.
(d) Public notice. All elections held pursuant to this Charter shall have at least thirty (30) days notice of election or referendum by publication in a local newspaper. The publication shall be made at least twice, once in the fifth week and once in the third week prior to the week in which the election or referendum is to be held.
Section 4.06 City Canvassing Board.
The City Canvassing Board shall be composed of the Charter Officers, and the City Attorney shall act as Chairman. At the close of the polls of any City election, or as soon thereafter as practicable, the Board shall meet at a place and time designated by the Chairman and shall proceed to publicly canvass the absentee elector’s ballots and then publicly canvass the vote as shown by the returns than on file in the Office of the Supervisor of City Elections. The Board shall prepare and sign a certificate containing the total number of votes cast for each person or other measure voted on. The certificate shall be placed on file with the City Clerk.
Section 4.07 Recall.
Any member of the City Commission may be removed from office by the electors of the City following the procedures for recall established by general law.