§ 6509. Runoff Elections for Governor and Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General
TITLE 1: GOVERNMENT DIVISION 6: ELECTIONS § 6509. Runoff Elections for Governor and Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General. (a) If in an election for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor – no candidate receives more than one-half of the total votes cast and counted, there shall be a runoff election fourteen days after the Commonwealth Election Commission has certified the results of the general election consistent with Article III, Section 4 of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Commission shall certify the results of the general election not later than twenty days after the date of the general election. (b) If, in an election for Attorney General, no candidate receives more than one-half of the total votes cast, there shall be a runoff election fourteen days after the Commonwealth Election Commission has certified the results of the general election consistent with Article III, Section 11(e) of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Commission shall certify the results of the general election not later than twenty days after the date of the general election. (c) The candidates who received the highest and second highest number of votes cast and counted in the general election shall compete in the runoff elec- tion. The candidates who receive more than half of the votes cast and counted in the runoff shall be declared the winner. (d) The Commonwealth Election Commission shall carry out the runoff elec- tion in the same manner as provided in 1 CMC § 6208, except that the distribu- tion deadlines for eligible voter lists and specimen ballots in § 6208(a) and § 6208(b) for the runoff election shall be not less than seven days before the day of the runoff election. (e) The Commission shall mail absentee ballots, other than absentee ballots that are picked up in person, not less than ten days before the runoff election date. All other matters pertaining to runoff election absentee ballots shall be as provided in chapter 2 of this part. (f) The Commonwealth Election Commission shall make reasonable rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the constitution and laws of the Common- wealth, as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter including, but not limited, to the timing, manner and method in which runoff absentee ballots are to be distributed, collected and counted. Source: PL 16-43, § 2(e); (a) amended PL 17-11 § 15 (August 12, 2010), modified; subsection (b) added and subsections (c) through (f) redesignated by PL 18-46 § 3(i) (Apr. 23, 2014), modified. Commission Comment: The Commission modified this section pursuant to 1 CMC § 3806(f) and (e). The Commission struck the figures “1/2,” “14,” and “20” from subsection (b) pursuant to 1 CMC § 3806(e). The Commission cor- rected dashes in subsection (b) to commas pursuant to 1 CMC § 3806(g).
Source: CNMI Law Revision Commission