AN ACT to Require a referendum in each municipality wholly located within cabarrus county on whether to change the method of election from nonpartisan to pARTISAN; and to modify the process for filling vacancies on the cabarrus County board of commissioners.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  Section 2.3 of the Charter of the City of Concord, being Section 1 of Chapter 861 of the 1985 Session Laws, as amended by City Ordinance No. 96‑105, adopted on November 14, 1996, reads as rewritten:

Sec. 2.3. City Council; composition; terms of office. The City Council shall be composed of seven members, each of whom shall be elected by and from the qualified voters of the city for staggered terms of four years each in the manner provided by Article III of this Charter, provided they shall serve until their successors are elected and qualified.

SECTION 1.(b)  Section 3.1 of the Charter of the City of Concord, being Section 1 of Chapter 861 of the 1985 Session Laws, as amended by Ordinance No. 1995‑02‑09, adopted on February 9, 1995, and Ordinance No. 96‑105, adopted on November 14, 1996, reads as rewritten:

Sec. 3.1. Regular municipal elections; conduct and method of election. Pursuant to G.S. 160A-101, the Charter of the City of Concord, as set forth in Chapter 861 of the 1985 Session Laws of North Carolina, as amended, is hereby further amended to implement nonpartisan plurality for elections (G.S. 163-292) of the City Council.Regular municipal elections in the City of Concord shall be held in the odd‑numbered years and shall be conducted in accordance with the uniform municipal election laws of North Carolina. The Mayor and the City Council shall be elected on a partisan basis, as provided in G.S. 163‑291.

SECTION 1.(c)  This section shall not affect the filling of a vacancy that occurs for the city officers of the City of Concord for a seat elected prior to the effective date of this section.

SECTION 1.(d)  The question of changing the method of election shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the City of Concord at the municipal general election to be held on November 3, 2025, which election shall be conducted in accordance with the laws governing elections at that time. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be:

[ ] FOR          [ ] AGAINST

Changing the method of election for the city officers of the City of Concord from nonpartisan to partisan to officially disclose political affiliation of partisan candidates on the ballot.

SECTION 1.(e)  The Cabarrus County Board of Elections shall certify the results of the referendum conducted under subsection (d) of this section. If the certification from the Cabarrus County Board of Elections reflects that a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the referendum set out in subsection (d) of this section, subsections (a) through (c) of this section become effective at the first regular meeting of the Concord City Council in December 2027, and elections in 2027 and thereafter shall be conducted accordingly.

SECTION 2.(a)  Section 4.1 of the Charter of the Town of Harrisburg, being Section 4 of Chapter 111 of the 1973 Session Laws, as amended by Town Ordinance adopted on July 13, 2015, reads as rewritten:

Sec. 4.1. Regular Municipal Elections. Regular municipal elections shall be held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each in odd‑numbered year, beginning in 1973. Council members hall be elected on a nonpartisan basis and the results determined by plurality, as approved in the North Carolina General Statutes.years. Town officers shall be elected on a partisan basis, as provided in G.S. 163‑291.

SECTION 2.(b)  This section shall not affect the filling of a vacancy that occurs for the town officers of the Town of Harrisburg for a seat elected prior to the effective date of this section.

SECTION 2.(c)  The question of changing the method of election shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the Town of Harrisburg at the municipal general election to be held on November 3, 2025, which election shall be conducted in accordance with the laws governing elections at that time. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be:

[ ] FOR          [ ] AGAINST

Changing the method of election for the town officers of the Town of Harrisburg from nonpartisan to partisan to officially disclose political affiliation of partisan candidates on the ballot.

SECTION 2.(d)  The Cabarrus County Board of Elections shall certify the results of the referendum conducted under subsection (c) of this section. If the certification from the Cabarrus County Board of Elections reflects that a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the referendum set out in subsection (c) of this section, subsections (a) and (b) of this section become effective at the first regular meeting of the Harrisburg Town Council in December 2027, and elections in 2027 and thereafter shall be conducted accordingly.

SECTION 3.(a)  Section 4.1 of the Charter of the Town of Midland, being Section 1 of S.L. 2000‑91, reads as rewritten:

Section 4.1.  Conduct of Town Elections.  Regular municipal elections shall be held in each odd‑numbered year in accordance with the uniform municipal election laws of North Carolina. Elections shall be conducted on a nonpartisan basis and results determined by a plurality as provided in G.S. 163-292.partisan basis, as provided in G.S. 163‑291.

SECTION 3.(b)  This section shall not affect the filling of a vacancy that occurs for the town officers of the Town of Midland for a seat elected prior to the effective date of this section.

SECTION 3.(c)  The question of changing the method of election shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the Town of Midland at the municipal general election to be held on November 3, 2025, which election shall be conducted in accordance with the laws governing elections at that time. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be:

[ ] FOR          [ ] AGAINST

Changing the method of election for the town officers of the Town of Midland from nonpartisan to partisan to officially disclose political affiliation of partisan candidates on the ballot.

SECTION 3.(d)  The Cabarrus County Board of Elections shall certify the results of the referendum conducted under subsection (c) of this section. If the certification from the Cabarrus County Board of Elections reflects that a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the referendum set out in subsection (c) of this section, subsections (a) and (b) of this section become effective at the first regular meeting of the Midland Town Council in December 2027, and elections in 2027 and thereafter shall be conducted accordingly.

SECTION 4.(a)  Section 3.2 of the Charter of the Town of Mount Pleasant, being Chapter 77 of the Private Laws of 1883, as amended by Town Ordinance adopted on February 11, 2019, reads as rewritten:

Section 3.2. Manner of Election; Term of Office

The qualified voters of the entire Town shall elect the Mayor and members of the Town Board of Commissioners that shall serve staggered four (4) year terms. Nonpartisan plurality Regular municipal elections shall take place every two years, be held in odd‑numbered years, with three commissioners being elected during one election cycle, and two commissioners and the Mayor during the next election cycle, and so on. Absentee ballots are permitted pursuant to Board of Elections requirements. The present Mayor, Commissioners and other officers of Mount Pleasant shall hold said offices with all the powers, privileges, rights and responsibilities which this charter and the former charter conferred until their successors are elected or appointed and qualified.years and shall be conducted in accordance with the uniform municipal election laws of North Carolina. The Town officers shall be elected on a partisan basis, as provided in G.S. 163‑291.

SECTION 4.(b)  This section shall not affect the filling of a vacancy that occurs for the town officers of the Town of Mount Pleasant for a seat elected prior to the effective date of this section.

SECTION 4.(c)  The question of changing the method of election shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the Town of Mount Pleasant at the municipal general election to be held on November 3, 2025, which election shall be conducted in accordance with the laws governing elections at that time. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be:

[ ] FOR          [ ] AGAINST

Changing the method of election for the town officers of the Town of Mount Pleasant from nonpartisan to partisan to officially disclose political affiliation of partisan candidates on the ballot.

SECTION 4.(d)  The Cabarrus County Board of Elections shall certify the results of the referendum conducted under subsection (c) of this section. If the certification from the Cabarrus County Board of Elections reflects that a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the referendum set out in subsection (c) of this section, subsections (a) and (b) of this section become effective at the first regular meeting of the Mount Pleasant Town Council in December 2027, and elections in 2027 and thereafter shall be conducted accordingly.

SECTION 5.(a)  G.S. 153A‑27.1(h), as amended by S.L. 2025‑3, reads as rewritten:

(h)      This section shall apply only in the following counties: Alamance, Alexander, Alleghany, Avery, Beaufort, Brunswick, Buncombe, Caldwell, Carteret, Cabarrus, Caswell, Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Cumberland, Dare, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Graham, Guilford, Harnett, Haywood, Henderson, Hyde, Jackson, Lee, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Moore, Onslow, Pender, Polk, Randolph, Rockingham, Rutherford, Sampson, Stanly, Stokes, Transylvania, and Yancey.

SECTION 5.(b)  This section is effective when it becomes law and applies to vacancies filled on or after that date.

SECTION 6.  Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law and applies to elections held on or after that date.