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| About | Council | Departments | Calendar | Get Involved | ||
MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS IN TAKOMA PARK ELECCIONES MUNICIPALES DE LA CIUDAD DE TAKOMA PARK (Spanish) |
Takoma Park elections are held the first Tuesday after the first Monday in every odd numbered year to elect a Mayor and all six City Councilmembers. The regular term of the Councilmembers and the Mayor is two years or until their successors have been elected and duly sworn. Newly elected Councilmembers and the Mayor take office on the second Monday following their election. City elections are non-partisan and no party labels are displayed on the ballot.
VOTER REGISTRATION INFORMATION FOR TAKOMA PARK RESIDENTS Voter Registration for United States Citizen Residents of Takoma Park To vote in a City of Takoma Park election, a voter must be a qualified voter and must have resided within the corporate limits of the City of Takoma Park for 30 days immediately preceding the election. The voter registration cut-off date is 30 days prior to an election. Changes of address must also be filed by this date. Voter registration forms or change of address forms are available in the City Clerk’s Office and online. Any resident of Takoma Park who is a United States citizen may register to vote through the Montgomery County Board of Elections. Registration shall be permanent unless such registration shall be canceled as provided by state law. No person is entitled to vote unless properly registered. If you are registered to vote in Maryland at an address within the City of Takoma Park, you do not need to do anything further to vote in City elections. Additional information on registering to vote may be found at: (Montgomery County Voter Registration Information) Voter Registration for Non-United States Citizen Residents of Takoma Park Any resident of Takoma Park who is not a United States citizen, but who is otherwise qualified to be registered as a voter in the State of Maryland, may register with the City Clerk’s Office to vote in City of Takoma Park elections only. To vote in a City of Takoma Park election, a voter must be a qualified voter and must have resided within the corporate limits of the City of Takoma Park for 30 days immediately preceding the election. The voter registration cut-off date is 30 days prior to an election. Changes of address must also be filed by this date. Voter registration forms or change of address forms are available in the City Clerk’s Office. INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES IN CITY ELECTIONS Candidates for the office of Mayor or Councilmember who wish to have their names placed on the ballot in a City election must receive a nomination and a second at the Nominating Caucus held on the Tuesday evening five weeks prior to the election. Mayor: Candidates for the office of Mayor must have resided in the city for at least six months immediately preceding his/her election, and must be a qualified voter of the city. The Mayor must maintain principal residence in the city during his/her term of office. If the Mayor changes his/her principal residence from the city, the Mayor’s term shall be immediately terminated and the vacancy shall be filled as provided in Section 308 of the City Charter. The Mayor is prohibited from holding other publicly elected offices during his/her term of office, and is prohibited from serving on any city board, commission, or other body that has authority to adjudicate or otherwise resolve disputes. Councilmember: Candidates for the office of Councilmember shall have resided in the city (and ward from which they are elected) for at least six months immediately preceding their election and shall be qualified voters of the city. The Councilmembers shall maintain their principal residence in the city and in their ward during their term of office. If a Councilmember changes his/her principal residence from the city or from the ward from which the Councilmember was elected, the Councilmember’s term shall be immediately terminated and the vacancy shall be filled as provided in Section 308 of the City Charter. The Councilmembers are prohibited from holding other publicly elected offices during their term of office, and are prohibited from serving on any city board, commission, or other body that has authority to adjudicate or otherwise resolve disputes. Write-In Candidates in the Election: A write-in candidate for the office of Mayor or Councilmember may pre-register as a write-in candidate and to have her/his name posted in the voting booth for the purpose of identifying her/him as a candidate for office. A write-in candidate who wishes to pre-register must file her/his name with the City Clerk no later than 5 p.m. on the Friday prior to the election. Any person nominated or presenting herself/himself as a write-in candidate must meet the qualifications of the office for which she or he is nominated. A person whose name appears on the ballot may not register as a write-in candidate, and a person may only register as a write-in candidate for one office in any election. The City of Takoma Park is divided into six wards for purposes of City elections. The City Council amended the City Charter in 2006 to adopt an instant runoff voting system for elections. Voters will have the opportunity to rank candidates by order of choice. The candidate receiving a majority of votes for Mayor shall be declared elected. The candidate for Council receiving a majority of votes in each ward shall be declared elected. The first choice marked on each ballot shall be counted initially as one vote. If any candidate receives a majority of the first choices, that candidate shall be declared elected. If no candidate receives a majority of first choices, the judges of election shall conduct an instant runoff consisting of additional rounds of ballot counting. In every round of counting, each ballot is counted as one vote for that ballot’s highest ranked advancing candidate. “Advancing candidate” means a candidate for that office who has not been eliminated. A candidate receiving a majority of valid votes in a round shall be declared elected. Any registered Takoma Park voter may apply to vote by absentee ballot. Absentee voting may be completed by mail or in person at the City Clerk’s Office. Instructions and deadlines for absentee voting will be published in advance of an election. To be counted, an absentee ballot must be received by the City Clerk before the closing of the polls on the day of the election. ELECTION RESULTS HISTORY
(Page updated August 10, 2011) |
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