(a) Each qualified person desiring to become a candidate for Mayor, Recorder or Councilman shall, between the second Monday of January and on or before 12:00 noon on the first Tuesday of February of an election year, or, if mailed shall be postmarked before that hour, file with the Recorder a certificate declaring himself a candidate for the office, which certificate shall be in form or effect as follows:
I, , hereby certify that I am a candidate for election to the office of , and declare my name printed on the official ballot to be voted in the primary election to be held on the day of , 19 ; that my residence is No. , , Street, Vienna, Wood County, West Virginia; that I am qualified and eligible to hold the said office; and that I am a candidate for said office in good faith. Candidate Signed and acknowledged before me this day of , 19 . Signature and official title of person before whom signed. |
(b) The certificate of candidacy shall be signed and acknowledged by the candidate before the Recorder, a Notary Public, or any other officer qualified to administer oaths in the State of West Virginia.
(c) On the Wednesday next following the first Tuesday of February of an election year the Ballot Commissioners shall certify all candidates who have filed announcements and who are qualified and entitled to have their names printed on the ballot for the primary election. Such certification shall include the name and residence of each candidate and the office for which he is a candidate. The certification shall be filed in the office of the Recorder and a copy posted in a conspicuous place in such office and kept posted until after the primary election.
(d) Individual desiring to become candidates shall, at the time of filing, deposit with the Recorder the following filing fees:
(1) Mayor: $120.00.
(2) Councilman and Recorder: $60.00.
All moneys received by the Recorder from such fees shall be credited to the general fund of the City.
(e) A candidate seeking nomination to any elected office who is unable to pay the filing fee may qualify through the following petition process in lieu of payment of the filing fee. Such candidate shall file on oath with the Recorder stating that he is unable to pay the filing fee due to lack of financial resources. Upon receipt of the written oath, the Recorder shall provide the candidate with in-lieu-of filing fee petition forms and instructions on gathering the required signatures. The number of required signatures shall be four qualified voters for each whole dollar of the filing fee; provided, that the filing fee shall be waived in whole and not in part. Only signatures of registered voters residing in the City may be solicited. No qualified voter forfeits his or her opportunity to vote in the primary election by signing an in-lieu-of filing fee petition. A candidate may submit a greater number of signatures to allow for subsequent losses due to invalidity of some signatures. The Recorder may not be required to determine the validity of a greater number of signatures than that required by this section. (Passed 12-17-92.)
(f) The candidate shall file all in-lieu-of-filing fee petitions with the required number of valid signatures with the Recorder not later than the last date and time required for filing declarations of candidacies and payment of the filing fee. The oath and form required by this section shall be prescribed by the Recorder.
(Ord. 0-19-88. Passed 12-22-88.)