City Council:
LOCAL LAW NO. ___ OF 2026
A LOCAL LAW AMENDING CHAPTER C, ARTICLE IV, SECTION 16 OF THE CHARTER
OF THE CITY OF MOUNT VERNON TO
ESTABLISH A RESIGN TO RUN REQUIREMENT
BE IT ENACTED by the City Council of the City of Mount Vernon, in the County of Westchester, State of New York, as follows:
Section 1: Title This Local Law shall be known and may be cited as:
“A Local Law Amending the Mount Vernon City Charter to Establish a Resign to Run Requirement”
Section 2: Amending the Chart of the City of Mount Vernon
The Charter of the City of Mount Vernon shall be amended as follows:
§ 16 Terms of office of elective officers.
§ 16.1. Definitions.
(a) “Elective office” means any city office filled by vote of the public.
(b) “Incumbent officeholder” means any person currently holding an elective office.
(c) “Qualifying for candidacy” means the filing of a nominating petition, certificate of nomination, or other official filing required to appear on the ballot.
§ 16.2. Resignation Requirement - The term of office of an elective officer, unless elected to fill a vacancy, shall commence on the first day of January next succeeding his election. The terms of office of the Mayor, the Comptroller, the Councilmen and the City Judge shall be four years. [All of the elective officers in office at the time of the passage of this Act, except as hereinafter provided, shall continue to hold their respective offices until the terms of office to which they have been elected as heretofore provided by law shall expire. The terms of office of the Receiver of Taxes, the City Treasurer, and the Assessors in office at the time of the passage of this Act, shall cease and determine on the 31st day of December, 1922.§102-17 Penalties.]
Notwithstanding the aforementioned terms of office, any incumbent officeholder who qualifies as a candidate for a different elective office, where the term of such office overlaps with the unexpired term of the officeholder’s current office, shall be deemed to have resigned from the current office upon such qualification; and the resignation shall be effective on the date of filing for candidacy.
§ 16.3. Exceptions.
This section shall not apply where:
(a) The officeholder is seeking re-election to the same office;
(b) The officeholder is running for an office where the term would commence only after the expiration of the current term; or
(c) The officeholder is a candidate for federal office, to the extent preempted by federal law.
§ 16.4 Notice of Resignation.
(a) Upon qualifying for candidacy, the officeholder shall file written notice of resignation with the appropriate filing authority.
(b) Failure to file such notice shall not delay or negate the automatic resignation under Section 2.
§ 16.5. Vacancy and Succession.
(a) Any vacancy created pursuant to this section shall be filled in accordance with applicable law governing vacancies in the office.
§ 16.6. Enforcement.
(a) The appropriate election authority shall not accept or process candidacy filings from any incumbent officeholder unless accompanied by proof of compliance with this section, where applicable.
Section 3. Effective Date. This Local Law shall take effect immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State in accordance with section 27 of the Municipal Home Rule Law.
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