All legislative authority, expressed or implied, shall be vested in the elected Council of the City of Defiance.
There shall be three members elected at-large and one member from each ward. All Council members shall be elected for four (4) year terms, beginning January 1 following the Municipal elections, except as provided in Article IX, Section 9.01. Candidates for election to terms beginning on and after January 1, 2016, shall be nominated by petition conforming to the requirements of Ohio law then in effect and be elected in a nonpartisan election. No primary election shall be held for the nomination of candidates after November 4, 2014, and any vacancy occurring after November 4, 2014, shall be filled in the manner provided by Section 2.04. (Amended November 4, 2014)