SECTIONS 10220-10230 - California Statutes

ELECTIONS CODE

SECTION 10220-10230

10220. Candidates may be nominated for any of the elective offices
of the city in the following manner:
Not earlier than the 113th day nor later than the 88th day before
a municipal election during normal office hours, as posted, the
voters may nominate candidates for election by signing a nomination
paper. Each candidate shall be proposed by not less than 20 nor more
than 30 voters in a city of 1,000 registered voters or more, and not
less than five nor more than 10 voters in a city of less than 1,000
registered voters, but only one candidate may be named in any one
nomination paper. No voter may sign more than one nomination paper
for the same office, and in the event the voter does so, that voter's
signature shall count only on the first nomination paper filed which
contains the voter's signature. Nomination papers subsequently filed
and containing that voter's signature shall be considered as though
that signature does not appear thereon. Each seat on the governing
body is a separate office. Any person registered to vote at the
election, and qualified to vote for the elective office of the city
for which the nomination is made, may circulate a nomination paper.
Only one person may circulate each nomination paper. Where there are
full terms and short terms to be filled, the term shall be specified
in the nomination paper.

10220.5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a candidate
shall not file nomination papers for more than one municipal office
or term of office for the same municipality in the same election.

10221. (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), the signatures to
each nomination paper shall be appended on the same sheet of paper,
and each signer shall add his or her place of residence, giving the
street and number, if any, or another designation of his or her place
of residence, so as to enable its location to be readily
ascertained.
(b) Once a nomination paper is filed with the elections official,
the nomination paper may not be returned to the candidate to obtain
additional signatures. If the nomination paper is determined to be
insufficient or the candidate fails to obtain the correct number of
valid signatures on his or her nomination paper, the elections
official shall retain the original nomination paper, provide a copy
of the nomination paper to the candidate with an indication on of
which signatures are valid, and issue one supplemental petition to
the candidate on which the candidate may collect additional
signatures. The supplemental petition shall be filed not later than
the last day for filing for that office. The form of the supplemental
petition shall be the same as the nomination paper, except that the
word "Supplemental" shall be inserted above the phrase "Nomination
Paper."

10222. Every nomination paper shall have annexed an affidavit of
the person who circulated it, to the effect that he or she saw
written all the signatures appended thereto, and knows that they are
the signatures of the persons whose names they purport to be.

10223. Each nomination paper shall be accompanied by a verified
statement of the candidate that he or she will accept the nomination,
and will also accept the office in the event of his election. The
statement shall contain a blank space wherein the candidate shall be
required to fill in his or her name in the manner in which he or she
wishes the same to appear on the ballot and also the designation
which he or she wishes to have under his or her name on the ballot,
which designation shall conform to one of the designations permitted
under this code relating to the forms of ballots generally.

10224. All nomination papers shall be filed with the city elections
official during regular business hours as posted, not later than the
88th day before the election. Until that time, but not after, a
candidate may withdraw his or her nomination paper after it is filed
with the elections official as provided in this section.

10225. (a) Notwithstanding Sections 10220 and 10224, if nomination
papers for an incumbent officer of the city are not filed by or on
the 88th day before the election, during normal business hours, as
posted, the voters shall have until the 83rd day before the election
during normal business hours, as posted, to nominate candidates other
than the person who was the incumbent on the 88th day, for that
incumbent's elective office.
(b) This section is not applicable where there is no incumbent
eligible to be elected. If this section is applicable,
notwithstanding Section 10224, a candidate may withdraw his or her
nomination paper until the 83rd day before the election during normal
business hours, as posted.

10226. The nomination papers and affidavits shall be substantially
in the following form:

"NOMINATION PAPER
We, the undersigned voters of the ____ of ____
hereby nominate ____ for the office of ____ of
the city:
Name Residence
_____________________ __________________________
_____________________ __________________________
_____________________ __________________________

AFFIDAVIT OF THE CIRCULATOR
State of )
California ) ss.
County of _________
I, ______, solemnly swear (or affirm) that the
signatures on this nomination paper were obtained
between _____, 2__, and _____, 2__; that I
circulated this petition and I saw the signatures
on this section of the nomination papers being
written; and that, to the best of my information
and belief, each signature is the genuine
signature of the person whose name it purports to
be.
My residence address is __________.
__________________________
(Signature)
I certify (or declare) under the penalty of
perjury under the laws of the
State of California that the foregoing is true
and
correct.
Executed by me at ____, on ____, 2__.

AFFIDAVIT OF THE NOMINEE
State of )
California ) ss.
County of _________
______ being duly sworn, says that he or she is
the above-named nominee
for the office of ____, that he or she will
accept the office in the event of his
or her election, that he or she desires his or
her name to appear on the ballot
as follows:
__________________________
(Print name above),
and that he or she desires the following
designation to appear on the ballot
under his or her name:
__________________________
(Print desired
designation above.)
I certify (or declare) under the penalty of
perjury under the lawsof the State of California
that the foregoing is true and
correct.
Executed by me at ____, on ____, 2___."

10227. All forms required for nomination and election to all
municipal offices shall be furnished only by the city elections
official during regular business hours. At the time of issuance of
those forms the city elections official shall type in the forms the
name of the candidate and the office for which he is a candidate,
shall imprint a stamp which reads "Official Filing Form," and shall
affix his or her signature. At the time nomination papers are issued
to a candidate, the city elections official shall imprint the date.
The forms shall be distributed without charge to all candidates
applying for them.

10228. A filing fee proportionate to the costs of processing a
candidate's nomination papers or a candidate's supplemental
nomination papers filed pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 10221
as determined by the city council and set by ordinance, but not
exceeding twenty-five dollars ($25), may be imposed, to be paid upon
the filing of the nomination papers.

10229. (a) If, by the 88th day, during normal business hours as
posted, prior to the day fixed for a regularly scheduled municipal
election or the 83rd day before the election, during normal business
hours as posted, if an incumbent fails to file pursuant to Section
10225, (i) no one or only one person has been nominated for any
office that is elected on a citywide basis, or (ii) no one or only
one person is nominated to be elected from or by a legislative
district, or (iii) in the case of any office or offices to be elected
at large, the number of persons who have been nominated for those
offices does not exceed the number to be filled at that election; or,
if, by the 88th day, during normal business hours as posted, before
a municipal election to fill any vacancy in office, no one or only
one person has been nominated for any elective office to be filled at
that election, and the election is subject to Section 36512 of the
Government Code, the city elections official shall submit a
certificate of these facts to the governing body of the city and
inform the governing body of the city that it may, at a regular or
special meeting held before the municipal election, adopt one of the
following courses of action:
(1) Appoint to the office the person who has been nominated.
(2) Appoint to the office an eligible elector if no one has been
nominated.
(3) Hold the election, if either no one or only one person has
been nominated. The city elections official shall publish a notice of
the facts described in this section and the courses of action
available under this subdivision. Publication shall be made pursuant
to Section 6061 of the Government Code in any newspaper of general
circulation as designated by the city elections official.
After the fifth day following the date of posting or publication,
the governing body of the city may make the appointment or direct an
election to be held in the affected territory. The person appointed,
if any, shall qualify and take office and serve exactly as if elected
at a municipal election for the office.
Notwithstanding Section 10403, if, by the 75th day before the
municipal election, no person has been appointed to office pursuant
to paragraph (1) or (2), the election shall be held.
(b) Subdivision (a) shall not apply if, at the regularly scheduled
municipal election, more than one person has been nominated to
another city office to be elected on a citywide basis or a city
measure has qualified and is to be submitted to the voters at that
municipal election.
(c) Notwithstanding Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 8600) of
Part 3 of Division 8, or any other provision of the law to the
contrary, if the governing body of a city makes an appointment
pursuant to subdivision (a), the elections official shall not accept
for filing any statement of write-in candidacy that is submitted
after the appointment is made.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent a city
from enacting an ordinance pursuant to Section 36512 of the
Government Code, requiring that a special election be held, or from
enacting an ordinance pursuant to Section 36512 of the Government
Code, providing that a person appointed to fill a vacancy on the city
council shall hold office only until the date of the special
election, or both. Any ordinance or ordinances may allow for
appointment consistent with subdivision (a) without requiring or
providing for a special election.
If an appointment to office is made in a particular legislative
district pursuant to subdivision (a), that appointment shall not
affect the conduct of the municipal election in other legislative
districts of the city.

10230. If the date of a general municipal election is changed by
municipal ordinance pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10403.5 or
by charter, the period to file as a candidate for the general
municipal election shall be the same as the nomination period to file
as a candidate for the election in which the general municipal
election is consolidated, notwithstanding Section 10220.