842 /Maryland Manual
dunng his term of office is convicted of or enters
a plea of nolo contenders to any crime which is a
felony, or which is a misdemeanor related to his
public duties and responsibilities and involves
moral turpitude for which the penalty may be in-
carceration in any penal institution, shall be sus-
pended by operation of law without pay or
benefits from the elective office Dunng and for
the penod of suspension of the elected official,
the appropnate governing body and/or official
authorized by law to fill any vacancy in the elec-
tive office shall appoint a person to temporarily
fill the elective office, provided that if the elective
office is one for which automatic succession is
provided by law, then in such event the person
entitled to succeed to the office shall temporarily
fill the elective office If the conviction becomes
final, after judicial review or otherwise, such
elected official shall be removed from the elective
office by operation of Law and the office shall be
deemed vacant If the conviction of the elected
official is reversed or overturned, the elected offi-
cial shall be reinstated by operation of Law to the
elective office for the remainder, if any, of the
elective term of office dunng which he was so
suspended or removed, and all pay and benefits
shall be restored
SEC. 3.'" No person who is a member of an
organization that advocates the overthrow of the
Government of the United States or of the State
of Maryland through force or violence shall be el-
igible to hold any office, be it elective or appoint-
ive, or any other position of profit or trust in the
Government of or in the administration of the
business of this State or of any county, munici-
pality or other political subdivision of this State
SEC. 4.^ Vacant
SEC. 5.'" Vacant
SEC. 6."' Vacant
SEC. 7.*" All general elections in this State
shall be held on the Tuesday next after the first
Monday in the month of November, in the year
in which they shall occur
'" Originally Article XV, sec 11, renumbered by Chapter 681,
Acts of 1977, ratified November 7, 1978
'" Transferred to Article XVII, sec 8, by Chapter 681, Acts of
1977, ratified November 7, 1978
'" Transferred to Article 23 of the Declaration of Rights by
Chapter 681, Acts of 1977, ratified November 7, 1978
'" Transferred to Article 23 of the Declaration of Rights by
Chapter 681, Acts of 1977, ratified November 7, 1978
'" Thus amended by Chapter 99, Acts of 1956, ratified No-
vember 6,1956

Article XV
SEC. 8.'^ Except as the Constitution provides
otherwise for any office, the General Assembly
may provide by law for a person to act in place
of any elected or appointed officer of the State
who is unavailable to perform the duties of his
office because he has become unable or is or will
be absent
ARTICLE XVI^
THE REFERENDUM.
SECTION 1. (a) The people reserve to them-
selves power known as The Referendum, by peti-
tion to have submitted to the registered voters of
the State, to approve or reject at the polls, any
Act, or part of any Act of the General Assembly,
if approved by the Governor, or, if passed by the
General Assembly over the veto of the Governor,
(b) The provisions of this Article shall be self-
executing, provided that additional legislation in
furtherance thereof and not in conflict therewith
may be enacted
SEC. 2.^ No law enacted by the General As-
sembly shall take effect until the first day of June
next after the session at which it may be passed,
unless it contains a Section declanng such law an
emergency law and necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public health or safety and is
passed upon a yea and nay vote supported by
three-fifths of all the members elected to each of
the two Houses of the General Assembly The ef-
fective date of a law other than an emergency law
may be extended as provided in Section 3 (b)
hereof If before said first day of June there shall
have been filed with the Secretary of the State a
petition to refer to a vote of the people any law
or part of a law capable of referendum, as in this
Article provided, the same shall be referred by
the Secretary of State to such vote, and shall not
become a law or take effect until thirty days after
its approval by a majonty of the electors voting
thereon at the next ensuing election held through-
out the State for Members of the House of
Representatives of the United States An emer-
gency law shall remain in force notwithstanding
such petition, but shall stand repealed thirty days
after having been rejected by a majonty of the
qualified electors voting thereon No measure cre-
ating or abolishing any office, or changing the
'** Added by Chapter 974, Acts of 1978, ratified November 7,
1978
'*" Added by Chapter 673, Acts of 1914, ratified November 2,
1915
"° Thus amended by Chapter 681, Acts of 1977, ratified No-
vember 7,1978