Baltimore Green Party
2016 Nomination Process and “Primary”
The Baltimore Green Party will use the following procedure to determine its nominees for all Baltimore City elections, including Mayor and City Council.
1.) All candidates seeking the nomination of the Baltimore City Green Party must file a Declaration of Intent with the Maryland State Board of Elections, as required by state law. The deadline for filing the Declaration of Intent for 2016 is Wednesday, February 3, 2016. The Baltimore Green Party will hold a party-organized primary election including the individuals who have declared their intent to be nominated for City elections.
2.) The first day an individual could file a Declaration of Intent for the 2016 election was January 16, 2015. Candidates are encouraged to begin campaigning as soon as possible.
3.) The Baltimore Green Party will make a Candidate Application available on the main page of the party's website. In addition to the filing requirements established by state law, candidates must complete this application before being listed on the Baltimore Green Party's primary election ballot. We are asking candidates to please have this application completed by Wednesday, February 10, 2016, one week after to the Declaration of Intent filing deadline.
4.) The Baltimore City Green Party will endeavor to hold public candidate forums after the deadline for submitting a Candidate Application and before the last day of the Baltimore Green Party primary election. In addition to any party-sponsored events, candidates are strongly encouraged to make their own efforts to establish contact with Green Party members in the jurisdiction in which they are seeking nomination.
5.) On Saturday, April 2, 2016 the Baltimore Green Party will publish a primary election ballot including the names of all candidates who are registered Green Party members according to State Board of Elections records, have filed a timely Declaration of Intent with the State Board of Elections, and have completed the Baltimore Green Party Candidate Application.
6.) Every person residing in the City of Baltimore and registered with the State Board of Elections as a Green Party member will be eligible to receive and cast a ballot by mail. Baltimore Green Party members who are not eligible to register to vote according to state law but who have registered with the Baltimore Green Party will be eligible to vote in this primary election.
7.) Ballots will be issued upon request to [email protected] or Baltimore Green Party, P.O. Box 22857, Baltimore, MD 21233. All requests for ballots by mail must be received by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, April 17, 2016.
8.) Ranked-choice voting will be implemented whenever possible. "None of the Above” and “No Nominee”will be listed as options for all races. Write-ins cannot be accepted.
9.) Voters may only vote for candidates running in the district in which the voter resides according to the State Board of Elections.
10.) In order to verify their status, each voter will be required to provide the following information on their ballot: name, ZIP code, and date of birth. In order to resolve any irregularities each voter must also provide a valid e-mail address or phone number at which they can reached to confirm their ballot.
11.) All ballots must be received by mail by the Baltimore Green Party at P.O. Box 22857, Baltimore, MD 21233 by 5pm on Saturday, April 30, 2016
12.) The Baltimore City Green Party will conduct in-person balloting on Sunday, May 1, 2016. All mail-in ballots will be publicly counted, along with the in-person ballots, on Sunday, May 1, 2016 at the close of the polls. The Baltimore Green Party will verify the authenticity of each cast ballot before counting the ballots. The Baltimore Green Party will endeavor to utilize independent vote counters and allow monitoring of the vote tally.
13.) Based on the results of this primary election, the Baltimore Green Party will submit the names of its nominees to the Maryland Green Party Coordinating Council for final approval and submission to the Maryland State Board of Elections. Certificates of Nomination must be filed by the Maryland Green Party by August 1, 2016.
Addendum:
Voter Registration:
- To be eligible to vote in the BGP Primary, a you must be a current resident of Maryland and at least 16 years old by the final date of the vote (the date of the MGP Presidential Nominating Convention).
- You must have affiliated with the Green Party for voter registration purposes by the State Board of Elections deadline to register to vote or change party affiliation (April 5,2016).
- If you are ineligible to register to vote in Maryland due to age, citizenship status or parole status, you may complete an MGP application stating your desire to affiliate with the Green Party. You must have communicated this intention to an MGP officer by April 5, 2016.