Chapter 5.16 VOTING

A. Voting in City elections may be by voting machine, electronically tabulated punchcard ballots or paper ballots, but only one voting system may be used in any election.
B. The Mayor and Council may purchase, rent, lease or otherwise acquire such voting systems and related equipment as may be required for an election.
C. If voting machines are used in an election, then the specifications for the machines, procedures for use of the machines in polling places on election day and manner of tabulating the votes following the election shall be as nearly as practicable in accordance with the provisions of Article 33, Sections 16-10, 16-11, and 16-16 of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended.
D. If an electronically tabulated punchcard ballot voting system is used in an election, then the specifications for the punchcard ballots, procedures for use of the punchcard ballots in polling places on election day and manner of tabulating the votes following the election shall be as nearly as practicable in accordance with the provisions of Article 33, Section 16-A-1 of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended.
E. If paper ballots are used in an election, then the specifications for the paper ballots, procedures for use of the paper ballots in polling places on election day and manner of tabulating the votes following the election shall be as nearly as practicable in accordance with the provisions of Article 33, Section 14-1 of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended. (Prior code § 4D-10)

A. The City Clerk shall provide ballots for all elections which shall contain:
1. The name of every candidate who has been nominated in accordance with the provisions of the Charter and with this title;
2. A description of every question which is to be submitted to a vote.
B. All ballots shall be printed in plain clear type in black ink upon material of such size and shape to fit the construction of the voting system.
C. The form and arrangement of all ballots shall be determined by the City Clerk in accordance with the following requirements:
1. In all elections, the names of candidates shall be arranged alphabetically on the ballots according to their surname, under the designation of office. The names of the candidates for Mayor shall appear first on the ballots, followed by the names of the candidates for Councilmember according to the numeric designation of the ward.
2. No ballot shall contain a party designation of a candidate.
3. Each ballot shall contain an appropriate instruction to the voter informing him or her of the offices for which he or she may vote and the number of persons for whom he or she may lawfully vote for each office.
4. All ballots shall contain a statement in understandable language of every question to be submitted to a vote at any election.
5. The City Clerk shall prepare and certify the form in which a question shall appear, and each question may be captioned with a descriptive title containing not more than 5 words.
6. Each ballot question shall be printed on the ballots following the name of the candidates and shall be accompanied by the words “For” and “Against.”
D. If, because of an error in printing or a change in circumstances, the City Clerk at any time finds it necessary to make a change in a
ballot, the City Clerk shall promptly change the ballots by taking the following action:
1. If there is sufficient time for printing or reprinting of the ballot, make the appropriate changes or corrections on the printed ballots;
2. If there is insufficient time for reprinting, and if it is appropriate to the voting system in use, cause to be printed a sufficient number of stickers incorporating the appropriate changes or corrections. The stickers shall be as consistent as possible with the printed ballots and be affixed to the ballots in the appropriate places;
3. If time does not permit the process provided in subsection (D)(2) of this section or if such a process is inappropriate, take all appropriate measures to notify voters of the change and the procedure to be used by each voter to record a vote;
4. After any change on a ballot, the City Clerk shall take all reasonable steps to notify all candidates for the office involved of the change or correction in the ballots.
E. The City Clerk may cause to be printed copies of the form of the ballot to be used for an election, to be in type of suitable size and designated as “specimen ballots.” Any such specimen ballots shall be conspicuously posted at each polling place and may be distributed to voters. (Prior code § 4D-11)

A. Upon request, election judges shall instruct a voter regarding the operation of the particular voting system.
B. Any voter who requires assistance to vote by reason of blindness, disability or inability to read the English language or write may be given assistance by a person of the voter’s choice, not to include any candidate or agent of that candidate.
1. Assistance in marking paper ballots or operating a voting machine or punchcard ballot shall be given to voters who declare under oath to an election judge that by reason of blindness, disability or inability to read the English language or write they are unable without assistance to mark their ballots or operate the voting machine or punchcard ballot. No ballot shall be marked or voting machine or punchcard ballot operated until 2 election judges are satisfied of the truth of the facts stated in such affidavit.
2. After such an affidavit has been made and filed with the election judges, the voter may enter into a voting machine, booth or other place set aside for voting with any person of the voter’s choice, not to include any candidate or agent of that candidate, or with 2 election judges. The person whom the voter has selected or, in the case the voter has selected no one, one of the election judges, in the presence of the other, shall mark the ballot or operate the voting machine or punchcard ballot as the voter shall direct.
3. The only assistance which will be lawful for the person whom the voter has selected or for the election judges to give the voter is to mark the ballot or operate the voting machine or punchcard ballot as the voter shall direct, without prompting or suggestion from them, or either of them.
4. A voter may not be accompanied into a voting machine, booth or other place set aside for voting by any person over the age of 12 years, unless the affidavit required by subsection (B) of this section has been accepted by the election judges. (Ord. 2005-34, 2005/prior code § 4D-12)

A. All qualified voters who are waiting in line to vote at the time of the official closing of polls shall be permitted to vote.
B. When the last voter in the polling place has voted, the election judges shall immediately lock and seal the operating lever or mechanism of each voting machine or other type of voting system, as practicable, so that the voting and counting mechanism will be prevented from operating and record the number of votes as shown on the counters of each machine or other type of voting system.
C. The election judges shall then compare the number of voters, as shown by the counter of each voting machine or other type of voting system, if any, with the number of those who have voted as shown by the list of registered voters. (Prior code § 4D-14)

A. After the polls have officially closed and the voting machines or other voting systems have been locked and sealed, the election judges then shall proceed to tabulate the votes cast.
B. The election judges shall tabulate the votes cast as provided in Section 5.16.010 using procedures to ensure the following:
1. The secrecy of the ballot;
2. Rejection of all votes for any office or ballot question when the number of votes cast by a voter exceeds the number that the voter is entitled to cast;
3. Correct counting of votes on ballots on which the proper number of votes has been indicated;
4. The tabulating and recording of votes by ward for or against any candidate, candidates or question;
5. Prompt reporting of election returns after the official closing of the polls.
C. The tabulation, release or announcement of election results prior to the official closing of the polls is prohibited.
D. All paper ballots, punchcards and the printed or photographic record from voting machines shall be safely kept by the City Clerk for 3 months after the date of the election at which the ballots were cast and may then be destroyed, unless prior to that time the City Clerk is ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction to keep the same for any longer period.
E. A violation of subsections (B) or (C) of this section is a Class B offense. (Prior code § 4D-15)

A. 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 within 2 days after the date the results of the election are certified to the Council.
1. The written notice shall be made under penalty of perjury and include a complete statement of all facts on which the candidate or voter relies to support his or her election contest.
2. The City Clerk shall immediately refer the notice of election contest to the City Administrator, who shall appoint 3 election judges to investigate the facts of the contest.
3. Within 4 days after the City Clerk receives the written notice of election contest, the 3 election judges shall make a report of their factual investigation, together with a recommendation for action to the Council.
B. Within 10 days after an election, the Council shall convene a special meeting to determine all election contests.
C. The candidate or voter who submitted the election contest notice shall be given a reasonable opportunity to be heard at the special meeting of the Council in regard to his or her election contest.
D. Any candidate or voter aggrieved by any decision or action of the Council shall have the right to appeal to the Circuit Court of the county in which such candidate or voter resides to review such decision or action and jurisdiction to hear and determine such appeals is hereby conferred upon the Circuit Court.
E. Appeals shall be taken by way of petition filed with the Circuit Court of the county in which the aggrieved candidate or voter resides within 5 days from the date of the decision of the Council at any election. Appeals shall be heard de novo and without a jury by the Circuit Court as soon as possible. (Prior code § 4D-16)

A. Every voting machine used in any election shall remain locked and sealed for 20 days after the date of any election or for as much longer as may be necessary or advisable because of any contest over the result of the election.
B. A voting machine may be opened and the data and figures in it examined in the presence of the principals involved in any election contest or their authorized representatives upon the order of any court of competent jurisdiction or by direction of the 3 election judges appointed pursuant to Section 5.16.070 to investigate and report upon contested elections affected by the use of such machine.
1. The 3 election judges or an individual appointed by a court of competent jurisdiction shall make a record of the votes for such contested office upon those voting machines.
2. Such record shall be received as evidence as fully as if proved by the oral testimony of the persons who shall sign the record of votes, or by the production of said voting machines in court or before the Council. (Prior code § 4D-17)