Burbank Municipal Code Art. 8 Elections

Municipal elections held in the City of Burbank shall be classified as of two (2) kinds:

(1) General Municipal Elections

(2) Special Elections.

General Municipal Elections for the election of officers and for such other purposes as the Council may prescribe shall be held biennially on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each even-numbered year, or to coincide with any general state-wide election held in November of each even-numbered year.

All other municipal elections that may be held by authority of this Charter or ordinance or under California law shall be known as Special Elections.

Except as otherwise provided by this Charter or ordinance, all municipal elections shall be held in accordance with the election laws of the State of California, as the same now exists or as may be amended from time to time.

Candidates to be elected to the office of Council Member, City Clerk or City Treasurer shall be elected at a General Municipal Election. The candidate who receives the highest number of votes for that office is elected.

The Council shall have power to submit to the voters of the City at any election any proposition or question or ordinance required or authorized to be so submitted by the Constitution of the State of California, the law, this Charter, or by ordinance; provided, that in case such proposition or question is required by the Constitution, law, Charter, or ordinance to be submitted at a special or other particular kind of election, it shall be so submitted, and not otherwise.

The Council may consolidate special elections with each other or with any municipal, county or state election. Provided, that when any municipal election is consolidated with any state or county election, the ballots used may be the ballots used at such state or county election, or may be separate ballots, or the voting may be in such manner as may be authorized by law, and the appropriate officials of the County of Los Angeles shall canvass the returns and shall certify the result of such canvass of all municipal questions submitted at such election, to the Council, who shall thereupon declare the result, and any act in relation to the conduct of such election, required by this Charter to be performed by any officer or employee of the City, shall be performed by the proper officer or employee of the County.

The Council shall, by resolution, order the holding of all elections. If a municipal election is consolidated with a State or County election, it shall not be necessary to set forth the precincts, polling places, or election officers, but reference shall be made to the notice and resolution of the Board of Supervisors of Los Angeles County calling such election. All resolutions ordering the holding or consolidation of elections shall be published once in a newspaper of general circulation at least five (5) days prior to the date of such election.

The Council may conduct any City election by all mail ballot in accordance with provisions adopted by ordinance. In such elections any inconsistent provisions of this Charter shall not be applicable. (Amended by Charter Amendment approved by the voters on June 5, 2018; previous Section 27; amended and renumbered by Charter Amendment approved by the voters on April 10, 2007.)

To allow for the orderly transition of holding general municipal elections in November of even-numbered years, the first general municipal election in even-numbered years will be in November 2020.

The transition to even-numbered year elections necessitates a onetime change in the length of the term for currently seated Council Members, City Clerk and City Treasurer. Their terms are modified one time as follows: a.) terms of the Council Members, elected in February/April 2015 and seated in May of 2015, will be changed from four years to five years and eight months, expiring no later than December 31, 2020, which is a one year and eight month extension and b.) terms of the Council Members, City Clerk, and City Treasurer, elected in February/April 2017 and seated in May of 2017, will be changed from four years to five years and eight months, expiring no later than December 31, 2022, which is a one year and eight month extension.

The terms of Council Members, City Clerk and City Treasurer will return to four years starting with those officials elected in the November 2020 election and thereafter.

This Section of the Charter supersedes any other Charter Section in contradiction hereof. (Repealed and replaced by Charter Amendment approved by the voters on June 5, 2018; previous Section 28; amended and renumbered by Charter Amendment approved by the voters on April 10, 2007.)

The provisions of the Elections Code of the State of California governing the exercise of the powers of initiative and referendum in cities and governing the exercise of the power of recall of municipal officers shall apply to the exercise of those powers in the City insofar as such provisions may be applicable and except as otherwise provided in this Charter, or as otherwise provided by the Council by ordinance. (Previous Section 30; amended and renumbered by Charter Amendment approved by the voters on April 10, 2007.)