Delaware General Assembly


CHAPTER 678

SENATE BILL NO. 837

AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 273 of VOLUME 46, LAWS OF DELAWARE, ENTITLED: "AN ACT TO REINCORPORATE THE TOWN OF ODESSA IN NEW CASTLE COUNTY" RELATING TO ELECTION PROCEDURES.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Delaware (two-thirds of all members elected to each House thereof concurring therein):

Section I. Amend Section 10 of Chapter 273, Volume 46, Laws of Delaware, by striking said section in its entirety as the same appears in said Chapter and substituting in lieu thereof a new Section 10 to read as follows:

"SECTION 10. ELECTION PROCEDURES

(a) Qualifications for Registration as a Qualified Voter.

Every applicant for registration shall be held and considered to be qualified voter if applicant is a citizen of the State of Delaware, living within the boundaries of Odessa; who shall be the age of eighteen (18) years on or before the date of local elections.

No idiot or insane person, person convicted of a crime deemed by law a felony or person who shall have been rendered incapable of voting by reason of violating Section 7 of Article V of the Constitution of this State for ten (10) years next following his conviction and sentence thereunder, shall be held or constituted a qualified voter.

(b) Registration Dates and Hours for Odessa Election.

who are qualified to enjoy the right of an elector in the Town of Odessa and who apply in person for registration, and whose names do not already appear as qualified voters on the registration records for said Town (at the place or places that have been selected and designated) on the second Saturday of March from ten o'clock (10:00) a.m. until two o'clock (2:00) p.m., and on the third Saturday of March from three o'clock (3:00) p.m. until seven o'clock (7:00) p.m.

(c) Notice of Registration.

It is the responsibility of Mayor and Council to notify potential registrants of the Town within ten (10) days prior to the second Saturday of March by notices published in five (5) public places within the Town of Odessa and in at least one newspaper covering the town.

(d) Registration Records.

There shall be an original and duplicate permanent registration record. The original permanent registration record of all voters shall consist of loose-leaf forms which shall be properly indexed alphabetically. The binder or binders shall be known as the ODESSA TOWN REGISTRATION RECORD. The Record shall remain at all times in the care of the office of the Town.

The duplicate permanent registration record shall be housed in locked fire-protected cabinets and shall be known as THE TOWN OF ODESSA MASTER RECORD. The registration record shall contain the following information:

(1) applicant's surname, given names and initials of other names;

(2) date of application for registration;

place of residence, including street number, post office designation of the address at which the applicant claims to reside;

(4) telephone number;

(5) length of applicant's residence in the Town;

(6) identification of the applicant including birth date, social security number, sex, height, color of hair, and color of eyes;

(7) signature of applicant. (e) Public Inspection of Registration Record.

The registration record shall be open to inspection of anyone desiring to examine the same without fee or reward. Anyone desiring to do so may be permitted to make copies or partial copies thereof.

(I') Registration Supplies.

Mayor and Council, acting for the Town shall furnish necessary maps, oaths, certificates and instructions for the use of the registration officers.

(g) Registration Officers.

Mayor and Council shall appoint one chief registrar and two assistant registrars prior to each registration period.

(h) Oath of Office for Registration Officers.

'1, , residing in Odessa, do

solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Delaware, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of registration officer for the Town of Odessa according to the best of my ability.'

() Compensation.

Each registrar shall receive Twelve Dollars and Fifty Cents ($12.50) per day for each day of actual service. Reoistration officers shall be neither candidates for local office nor current office-holders during his or her time of tenure as registrar.

The general municipal election shall be held in the local Fire Hall in said Town on the first Monday in April of each year from one o'clock (1:00) until seven o'clock (7:00) in the afternoon. All persons desiring to be candidates at any municipal election shall file with the Secretary of the Council a written statement of their candidacy, at least thirty (30) days previous to said election, and a vote cast for any person whose candidacy has not been filed shall not be counted unless the State declares that write in votes must be counted in municipal elections. The Mayor shall, at least forty-five (45) days before any general election, give notice of such election, together with the names of offices to be filled by posting notices in five (5) or more public places in said Town. At least ten (10) clays previous to said election, the Mayor shall post notices in five (5) or more public places in said Town setting forth the names of the candidates for each office to be filled at said election. There shall be an inspector and two judges, which judges shall also at as clerks at such election, elected by the Council.

At such election every citizen of said Town, who shall have attained the age of eighteen (18) years and has properly registered shall have a right to vote. The inspector and judges of the election shall decide on the legality of the votes offered. Immediately after the election is closed, the votes shall be tallied and read aloud in public, and the persons having the highest number of votes shall be declared duly elected for the term specified. Those elected shall be immediately sworn into office by the Mayor and duly recorded in the minutes by the Town Secretary.

A failure to hold an election on an election day shall not dissolve the corporation, but the authority of each officer shall continue until the next general municipal election. In the event an election is not contested, it shall and may be lawful to open polls at one o'clock (1:00) p.m. and close them at two o'clock (2:00) p.m."

Approved August 3, 1976