Regular city elections shall be held on the Second Tuesday in May or on the date of the next State of West Virginia Primary Election, following adoption of this Charter Amendment and on the same date of every even year thereafter. Special elections shall be held at such times as may be fixed by the council in accordance with the provisions of this charter and of general law.
The ballot to be used in city elections shall be prepared by the council and shall have set forth thereon in one division the names of all properly nominated candidates for election to membership on the council, and in another division the names of all properly nominated candidates for election to membership on the water board. In the printing of the ballots, the position of the names of the candidates shall be in like manner as is provided by general law for the printing of official primary ballots. The ballots shall state that the election is non-partisan and shall clearly indicate the number of candidates for each office for whom the voter is entitled to vote. At least ten days before the election a sample ballot showing the names of all properly nominated candidates shall be published once in two newspapers
published in the city in the same manner as is provided by law for the publication of the list of nominations in a general election.
Except as otherwise provided in this charter, city elections shall be conducted and the result determined and certified in accordance with the provisions of general law with respect to primary, general and special elections, so far as they are applicable, except that the duties devolving upon the county court and the clerk thereof under the general laws for conducting elections shall be performed by the city council and the city clerk. The council shall appoint three commissioners and two clerks to serve as election officials in each precinct in the city. At least three days before the date of the election the city clerk shall procure from the clerk of the county court the necessary registration records and other election supplies and shall deliver them together with the ballots to the election officials. The election officials shall as soon as possible after the closing of the polls on election day return to the city clerk the ballots, tally sheets, certificates of the result of the election, registration records, ballot boxes and other election supplies. On the first Monday following the election the council shall canvass the returns of the election and declare the result. In the case of a contest the council shall be the judge of the election and qualifications of all city officials.
The cost incurred in holding and conducting regular city elections, after deducting all nomination fees received in connection therewith, shall be paid one-half out of the general city revenues and one-half out of the revenues of the water board. The costs of conducting special elections shall be paid out of general city revenues, except that the cost of any special election held at the request of the water board shall be paid out of its revenues.
(Amended 6-1-21)