NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1967 SESSION

 

 

CHAPTER 57

HOUSE BILL 125

 

 

AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 380 OF THE PRIVATE LAWS OF 1915, RELATING TO TERMS OF ALDERMEN AND THE CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF SANFORD.

 

 

The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact:

 

Section 1. Chapter 380 of the Private Laws of 1915 is hereby amended by rewriting Sections 4 through 14 thereof to read as follows:

"Sec. 4. The governing body of the City shall consist of a Mayor and one Alderman from each of the seven wards, elected by the qualified voters of the City voting at large in non-partisan elections and in the manner provided by Sections 5 and 6.

"Sec. 5. Regular City elections shall be held biennially on the second Saturday after the first Monday in May, beginning in 1967. In each regular election there shall be elected a Mayor and seven Aldermen, one who resides in each of the seven wards.

"Sec. 6. In each regular biennial election, each qualified voter of the City shall be entitled to vote for one candidate for Mayor and for one candidate for Alderman from each ward. In each regular election, the candidate for Mayor who receives the largest number of votes cast for Mayor shall be declared elected, and the candidate for Alderman from each of the wards who receives the largest number of votes cast for candidates who reside in the ward wherein he resides shall be declared elected. In case of an equal number of votes between opposing candidates, the Board of Elections of Lee County shall determine the result by lot.

"Sec. 7. Following each regular election, the Mayor and Aldermen elected shall assume their offices on July 1 following the election. If said day shall fall on Sunday then they shall assume their offices on the Monday next following.

"Sec. 8. In the case of a vacancy for any reason in the office of Mayor or Alderman, the remaining members of the Board of Aldermen shall by majority vote fill the same for the remaining unexpired portion of the term. Vacancies in the office of Alderman shall be filled so as to retain one Alderman from each of the seven wards. Removal by any Alderman from the ward in which he resided at the time of his election shall ipso facto create a vacancy in the office of Alderman from such ward.

"Sec. 9. The Board of Elections of Lee County shall conduct all elections of the City, including regular elections, bond elections, and any other authorized special elections, called or requested by the Board of Aldermen of the City. Except as otherwise provided in this Act or as otherwise provided in general or local acts relating to bond elections or other special elections in the City, all City elections shall be conducted under the laws, rules, and regulations governing the conduct of general elections in Lee County. The City is hereby authorized to reimburse Lee County for the actual costs of conducting each election for the City.

"Sec. 10. In conducting City elections, the Board of Elections of Lee County shall use the registration books of Lee County, and all persons now or hereafter duly registered in such registration books, who live within the City, shall be entitled to vote in all City elections: Provided, the Board of Elections shall conduct a complete new registration of voters who live within the City prior to the 1967 regular City election. Such new registration shall be conducted at the Lee County Courthouse beginning on Monday, April 3, 1967, and ending at 6:00 o'clock p.m. Saturday, April 29, 1967. The Lee County Board of Elections shall upon request of the governing body of the City of Sanford send registrars or special registration commissioners into the wards and to the voting places at such hours and dates as shall be designated by said governing body of the City of Sanford. The Board of Elections shall determine the hours of registration on each day during the registration period, but no registration shall be conducted on Sundays. The Board of Elections shall cause a notice of such new registration to be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the City at least once in each of the two calendar weeks immediately preceding the first day of registration. For such new registration, the Board of Elections may appoint as many qualified registrars, including special registrars, as necessary. The City shall reimburse Lee County for the cost of conducting such new registration. Existing City registration books and poll books shall no longer be used in City elections, and shall be impounded by the City Clerk.

"Sec. 11. The Board of Elections of Lee County shall, insofar as is practicable, establish and maintain its voting precincts located within the City so that no precinct boundary crosses the boundary of any City ward; provided, nothing herein shall be deemed to require that a separate voting precinct be established for, or within the boundaries of, each City ward.

"Sec. 12. The office labels used in voting machines in regular City elections shall be printed so that the names of candidates for Alderman are separated according to the wards in which they reside. At the top of each such separate portion of the office label shall appear the words 'For Alderman, (insert ordinal number) ward', and appearing immediately beneath such words on each separate portion of the office label shall appear the words 'Vote for one (1)'. Absentee ballots shall not be permitted in City elections.

"Sec. 13. Each qualified person who would offer himself as a candidate for the office of Mayor or Alderman shall file with the Board of Elections of Lee County a written statement giving notice of his candidacy. Such statement shall be filed not earlier than the ninth Monday and not later than five o'clock p. m. on the fifth Monday preceding the election at which he offers his candidacy, shall be accompanied by a filing fee of fifteen dollars ($15.00), and shall be in substantially the following form: 'I, ......  do hereby give notice that I am a candidate for election to the office of (Mayor) (Alderman (insert ordinal number) ward), of the City of Sanford, to be voted upon at the election to be held on ........................................ , and I hereby request that my name be placed on the official ballot for such office. I certify that I am a resident and qualified voter of (the City of Sanford) (the (insert ordinal number) ward, City of Sanford), residing at          .

Signature

                                                                   ......................................................................................

Witness: .................................................................................... '

Funds collected as filing fees shall be paid over to the City of Sanford.

"Sec. 14. None of the provisions of Article 3 of Chapter 160 of the General Statutes shall apply to elections in the City of Sanford."

Sec. 2. The following Acts or portions of Acts, having served the purposes for which enacted, or having been consolidated into this Act, are hereby repealed:

(a)       All of Section 2 of Chapter 95 of the Private Laws of 1931, except the last three lines thereof;

(b)       Chapter 213, Private Laws of 1935;

(c)       Sections 1 and 2 of Chapter 323, Public-Local Laws of 1939;

(d)       Chapter 411 of the Public-Local Laws of 1939;

(e)       Chapter 118 of the Public-Local Laws of 1941.

Sec. 3. All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.

Sec. 4. This Act shall be in full force and effect from and after its ratification.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 17th day of March, 1967.