860                             LAWS OF MARYLAND                      [CH. 392

dacy are mandatory and the provisions of these paragraphs shall also
be applicable to municipal elections in Baltimore City.

(a)    Whenever any person who has filed a certificate of candidacy
for nomination in any primary election shall, in a writing signed by
him, and acknowledged before a justice of the peace or notary public,
notify the officer or board with whom the certificate of candidacy is
required to be filed by this article, at least forty-five (45) days before
the said primary that he desires to withdraw as a candidate for such
nomination, the certificate of candidacy shall thereupon be and be-
come void; and the name of any person so withdrawing shall not be
printed upon the ballots to be used at the primary election. The
filing of a valid certificate of withdrawal of candidacy is a final act
of withdrawal; and a person who files such a certificate of withdrawal
may not re-instate his candidacy, unless the time limit for the filing
of candidacies has not expired. No filing fees shall be refunded to
persons who withdraw in accordance with this section, subject, how-
ever, to Section 4-8 of this article.

(b)    Whenever any person nominated for public office as in this
article provided shall, at least thirty-five (35) days before election, in
a writing signed by him and acknowledged before a justice of the
peace or a notary public, notify the officer with whom the certificate
nominating him is required to be filed by this article, that he declines
such nomination, such nomination shall be void; and the name of any
person so withdrawing shall not be printed upon the ballots.

9-2. Filling vacancies: State and judicial offices; Congress and U.S.
Senator.

(a)    Should any nominee die before election day or decline the
nomination, as in this subtitle provided, or should any certificate of
nomination be or become insufficient or inoperative from any cause
occurring after the period of time for the filling of vacancies in party
nominations as is prescribed by Sec. 4-6 of this Article, the vacancy
or vacancies thus occasioned shall be filled in the manner prescribed
as hereinafter set forth.

(b)    In the event of any vacancy occurring because of the death or
resignation of any person nominated for any state or judicial office,
or as a candidate for member of the Congress of the United States or
for United States Senator, under provisions of the preceding sections
of this Article, such vacancy shall be filled by the State Central Com-
mittee, or governing body for the State, of the political party to which
said nominee belongs.

(c)    If the original nomination was made by a primary meeting
which had delegated to a committee the power to fill vacancies, such
committee may, upon the occurring of such vacancies, proceed to fill
the same; the chairman and secretary of such committee shall there-
upon make and file with the proper officer a certificate setting forth
the cause of the vacancy, the name of the person nominated, the
office for which he was nominated, the name of the person for whom
the new nominee is to be substituted, the fact that the committee was
authorized to fill vacancies and such further information as is re-
quired to be given in an original certificate of nomination. The
certificate so made shall be executed and acknowledged in the manner
prescribed for the original certificate of nomination, and, except in
the case of a nominee dying, shall be filed at least thirty-five days