(a) Any candidate for elective office in the City shall be nominated by petition which shall be filed with the election authorities at the time required under the general laws for municipalities that do not have primary elections. Such petition shall state the name and place of residence of each person whose name is presented for a place upon the ballot and the name of the office for which he is a candidate; it shall be signed by not less than twenty-five (25) qualified electors of the municipal corporation, except that the nominating petition of a candidate for election to Council to represent a ward of the City (as distinguished from at-large) need have the signatures of not less than twenty (20) qualified electors of the ward in which the candidate is resident and in which he seeks election.
(b) Such petition shall contain a provision that each signer thereto shall add to his signature his place of residence, his ward and precinct and the date of signing. Each subscriber may sign only one nominating petition for each place to be filled. All signatures shall be made with ink or indelible pencil. The affidavit of the circulator as required by the general law shall be attached to the petition and filed with the election authorities prescribed by the general law at the time so prescribed.
(c) Any person whose name has been submitted as a candidate by such petition shall file his acceptance of such candidacy with the election authorities not less than fifty-five days previous to such election; otherwise, his name shall not appear upon the ballot, or if it does appear on the ballot the votes cast for such candidate shall not be counted.