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The Council shall enact an ordinance in all cases specified by this Charter in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) An ordinance shall be read at not less than two meetings, regular or special, which need not be consecutive, with at least one week intervening between each meeting;
(2) Before final passage, notice of such ordinance shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the City. Such notice shall state the following:
A. General title or titles of the ordinance.
B. The date, time and place of the proposed final vote on adoption.
C. The place or places within the Municipality where such proposed ordinance may be inspected by the public.
D. Said notice shall also advise that interested parties may appear at the meeting and be heard with respect to the proposed ordinance.
A reasonable number of copies of the proposed ordinance shall be kept at such place or places as mentioned in such notice and be made available for public inspection.
(3) An ordinance shall not be finally passed until after ten days have elapsed after the date of publication of the aforementioned notice and persons interested have been given an opportunity to attend a meeting of the Council and be heard with respect to the ordinance.
(4) An ordinance shall not be materially amended at the same meeting at which it is finally passed. If materially amended after publication of the aforementioned notice, notice as to the intended passage of such ordinance shall be republished and considered as though publication of such notice had not taken place. The Council may enact an ordinance under suspension of the rules prescribed by this section only in the case of a pressing emergency making a procedure in accordance with this section dangerous to the public health, safety, or morals, and by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of all of the members of the Council. The nature of the emergency shall be set out in full in the ordinance.
(2-16-88)
The City shall be divided into wards, the future boundaries of which may be determined by the Council. Each ward shall contain at least four hundred and fifty, and not more than twelve hundred registered voters. In fixing ward boundaries, the Council shall take into consideration the boundaries of the voting precincts as determined by the County Court of Kanawha County. The Council may establish new wards, and define and change the boundaries of all wards; provided, however, that each ward must be composed of contiguous territory. Each new ward shall be entitled to choose one new member of the Council. Councilmen at large shall be added to the Council in the proportion of one for each four ward Councilmen or fraction thereof, and only one Councilman at large shall be elected from any one ward.
The number of City wards and the composition thereof are set forth and established in Section 103.08 of the Administrative Code of the Codified Ordinances of the City of St. Albans. (11-3-08)
(1) The regular elections for electing the Mayor and members of City Council shall be by non-partisan ballot, and in accordance with the statutes of the State of West Virginia, and shall be held at the same time as County and State primary elections are held.
(2) The Mayor and members of Council shall be elected at intervals of four years in conjunction with County and State primary elections, and their terms shall begin on the first day of July of that election year;
(3) Every person qualified pursuant to West Virginia Code §3- 1-3 and who has been duly registered to vote, shall be entitled to vote at all elections held for the City of St. Albans provided, however, that only persons who are registered to vote with the Kanawha County precinct encompassing the City of St. Albans may vote on City of St. Albans candidates or valid items which are specific to the City of St. Albans.
(4) Pursuant to West Virginia Code §8-5-13 the conduct of all city elections shall be registered with the City of St. Albans with permanent registered voters as set out in West Virginia Code Article 3-2 provision of which insofar as they are applicable to this City are hereby adopted and made part of this Article.
(5) Pursuant to the provisions of West Virginia Code §8-5-14 in Chapter 3, referring more particularly to Primary Elections shall, in so much said they can be applied, govern by the conduct of the elections for the City of St. Albans so administered.
(6) All provisions of the West Virginia Code applicable to elections shall apply to the City of St. Albans elections and shall be handled by the Kanawha County Election Officials.
(Ord. 2023-10. Passed 11-20-23.)
(1) Candidate Filing Period: Not earlier than second Monday in January and not later than last Saturday in January preceding primary election, candidates for nomination or election in the Primary Election must file certificates of announcement of candidacy and filing fee with:
The City Clerk of the City of St. Albans.
(2) Hours for in-person Filing: Regular business hours of the Clerk during the year of the primary election. The final day, the last Saturday of January, shall be 9:00 a.m. to Noon at the City Clerk's Office.
(3) Mailed Certificate of Announcement Deadline: Must be postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service before midnight E.S.T. on the last Saturday of January in the election year.
Candidates unable to pay filing fee must provide an oath stating he or she is unable to pay fee due to lack of financial resources and receive in-lieu-of-filing-fee petition forms and instructions on gathering signatures. Candidates shall file petitions with required number of signatures by the close of filing on the last Saturday of January in the election year. (Ord. 2023-11. Passed 11-20-23.)
A new party may place candidates for any office upon the ballot at the general election by filing a petition therefor, signed by at least ten (10%) percent of the registered voters on the date of the last preceding regular municipal election, and containing the names of the candidates for such offices, with the Clerk at least twenty days prior to the date set for such general election, and paying the proper filing fees therefor. If any candidate of such new party for the office of Mayor receives more than ten percent of the votes cast for all candidates for his office, the new party shall be established as a qualified political party at the next municipal election. If the candidate for Mayor of any party fails to poll more than ten percent of the votes cast for all candidates for that office at any general election, such party shall be dropped from the ballot at the next municipal election, unless placed on the ballot by petition as a new party.
At the date of the adoption of this Charter, two parties shall be considered as the qualified parties in the next municipal election, to-wit; the peoples party and the citizens party. Any other party may be placed on the ballot by petition, as provided in this Charter.
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