Santa Clara Municipal Code Ch. 2.125 Municipal Elections

The purpose of this article is to provide for holding municipal elections in the city in accordance with the provisions of certain State election laws as authorized in Section 600.01 and Section 700 of the City's Charter.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Formerly § 2-111)

A voter is as defined in the Elections Code of California.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Formerly § 2-112)

A regular election shall be held in the city at a time prescribed by the Charter, which at present is on the first Tuesday in April of each odd numbered year, and the same shall be known as the general municipal election. All other municipal elections that may be called under the authority of the City's Charter, or by general laws, shall be known as special elections.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Formerly § 2-113)

Except as otherwise provided in this Code, all elections called and held in the city shall be held and conducted in manner and form as required by the general laws of the State governing elections within municipalities.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Formerly § 2-114)

Notice of elections shall be given pursuant to the California Elections Code. No error, omission or defect in said notice shall be cause to invalidate any election held under the provisions of the City's Charter or this Code.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Formerly § 2-115)

(a) Any person otherwise qualified may be a candidate for City elective office at any election, regular or special, by filing with the City Clerk within the time prescribed in the Elections Code of California a petition signed by not less than twenty (20) nor more than thirty (30) voters in the city.

(b) No person shall hold at any one time nomination petitions or other nomination papers for more than one City elective office, including but not limited to holding such petitions or papers for more than one numbered seat on the City Council, or holding such petitions or papers for both a numbered Council seat and the office of Mayor, City Clerk or Chief of the Police Department. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the City Clerk shall not issue to any person nomination petitions or other nomination papers for more than one City elective office.

(c) Nothing in this section shall prevent a person from withdrawing his or her nomination for a specific City elective office by returning to the City Clerk, without filing, nomination petitions or nomination papers for that position. After withdrawing his or her nomination for the specific City elective office, the City Clerk may issue and the candidate may obtain nomination petitions or nomination papers for another position.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Ord. 1851 § 1, 12-15-2009; Formerly § 2-116)

When the Council acts as a canvassing board to canvass election returns, it will not later than the seventh day after the election, and at the usual hour and place of meeting, meet and canvass the returns and declare the result. Any such canvass may be held earlier than seven days after such election provided that all absentee ballots furnished for such election have been returned to the Clerk. The City Council may adjourn from day to day for the purpose of completing any such canvass.

(Ord. 1325 § 1, 12-9-1975; Formerly § 2-117)

Pursuant to Section 15651 of the California Elections Code, in the event of a tie vote between candidates who received an equal number of votes and the highest number of votes for an elective position enumerated in Section 600 of the City Charter, the tie vote shall be resolved by the following procedure:

(a) The first tie-break procedure will be counting precinct success. The candidate who prevails in the largest number of precincts shall be deemed the winning candidate.

(b) If the precinct determination does not resolve the tie vote, the City Council, by majority vote of a quorum present, shall select an alternate "by lot" procedure and then proceed with that procedure to determine the winning candidate.

(c) The "by lot" procedure will be resorted to only after certified results of the election have been received from the registrar of voters.

(Ord. 1662 § 1, 10-25-1994; Formerly § 2-118)