Request By:
Honorable Dale S. Ditto
City Attorney
City of Williamsburg
208 Sycamore Street
Williamsburg, Kentucky 40769
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in response to your letter of April 11 in which you relate that the city of Williamsburg, a city of the fourth class, has for a number of years conducted nonpartisan elections pursuant to KRS 89.060 and desires to continue electing its officers in a nonpartisan manner; however, the city has not adopted an ordinance electing to operate under KRS 83A.170. The question is raised as to whether or not the city must adopt such an ordinance in order to continue to conduct a nonpartisan election for its officers.
Our response to your question would be in the affirmative. KRS 83A.050, referred to by you, declares in effect that cities of all classes, regardless of the form of government under which they operate, may conduct their elections pursuant to a nonpartisan May primary procedure outlined in KRS 83A.170 with the exception of second class cities operating under the city manager form of government which are required to do so. This statute makes it optional on the part of all cities other than second class to proceed to operate under KRS 83A.170. Therefore, in order to so operate, an ordinance must be enacted 240 days before the general election, the deadline for which was March 9 of this year.
Since the city failed to enact such an ordinance, it must operate its elections under the general election laws as also provided in KRS 83A.050 which means insofar as fourth class cities are concerned that candidates for all city offices may seek major party nomination in the regular May party primary by filing notification and declaration papers not later than April 1 or such candidates may run as independents by filing a petition not later than 55 days before the general election. When such candidates file independent petitions, the clerk is required to list them in a single vertical column under the party they seek with no independent party designation. They are listed by lot and this procedure establishes a nonpartisan election. Of course, those candidates nominated by the major parties will be listed in the major party columns on the November ballot.
We might add that candidates filing independent petitions may do so at any time even prior to the primary but no later than September 9 which is the 55-day deadline required under KRS 118.365 (4).