Last updated 02/15/2008
Forest Heights Elections
Click
here
for the March 2008 elections campaign information.
Elected Offices and Wards Forest Heights: The Town of Forest
Heights is an
incorporated municipality under the laws of Maryland. Residents in the
Town have the right to vote in the Town's elections which are held on
the second Wednesday in March of every year. Elective offices in the
Town
are the Mayor, and
two Council members from each of three wards (See map in JPG Format; PDF Format).
The
term of office for all elected officials is two years. Council
member terms from each ward are staggered so that every year one
Council member from each Ward must
stand for re-election. The next Mayoral election is March 11, 2009.
Voter Eligibility: To be
eligible to vote, a person must reside in the Town and be
registered with the Prince George's County Board of Election
Supervisors. To find out how to register, visit the Prince George's County Election Board's website
where you can
download a registration form. Or call 301-952-3270 and a form will be
mailed to you. Forest Heights elections are nonpartisan and one need
not be a member of a political party to vote or run for office in Town
elections. The Prince George's County website also lists several
locations where a
resident can register to vote in person. The voter registration form
can be downloaded from the Maryland State Board of Elections website
in: English,
or in Spanish.
Absentees & Write-ins: The
Town Charter provides for absentee ballots if requested at least 7
days before the election, and write-in
candidates must be permitted
under the Town Charter.
Town Board of Elections: The
Town election is conducted by a Town Board of Elections which are
appointed every odd-numbered year. Current members of the Town
Board are Freddie Colston, Chairperson
(Onondaga Drive), Willie Lowery
(Onondaga Drive), and Bessie Smith (Ottawa Street). The Election Board
Chair is elected by the Board members.
Running for Office: The requirements for Town elections are
specified in Sections 33-23 through 33-39 of the Town Charter (HTML Format) (PDF
Format): Normal Type Large
Type). Revisions to those Charter sections effective April 28, 2007
can be found on the Town Documents page of
this website. Town citizens wishing to
be a candidate for office must file a Certificate
of Nomination with the Town Clerk. A statement of
qualifications (campaign statement) for publication in the Forest
Heights
News should also be submitted to the Town Clerk. (Note, a person can be
elected to office without having filed a certificate if sufficient
write-in votes are cast, but that person will not be listed on the
election ballot. Also, the write-in candidate must also meet the other
qualifications required for the elective office by the Town Charter.)
This website will also
post campaign statements and flyers of all candidates for Mayor and
Council
member position that are made available to us. Candidates for Mayor and
Council member must have lived in the Town for at least one year prior
to
their election and be registered voters. Candidates for Council seats
must
also reside in the Ward they will represent.
Click
here to view the results of prior
Town elections.