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Town attorney says businesses may not vote in Friendsville municipal elections
Summary
An attorney's written opinion included in the Oct. 7 Town of Friendsville minutes concludes that corporations and other business entities cannot vote in town elections because the town charter and Maryland Constitution limit voting to individual resident citizens.
An attorney's written opinion included in the Town of Friendsville's Oct. 7 meeting record states that businesses cannot vote in Friendsville municipal elections.
The minutes append an email from Michael A. Llewellyn, Esq., who advised the Mayor and town officials that the Town's charter and the Maryland Constitution reserve voting rights to natural persons who are residents. Citing the charter, Llewellyn quoted Section 5-102: “Persons who reside within the corporate boundaries of the municipal corporation at the closing of registration next preceding any municipal election and who are qualified to vote for members of the General Assembly of Maryland shall have the right to vote in all municipal elections.” He also cited Section 1-101, which describes the Town as a corporate body made up of “citizens,” and Article I of the Maryland Constitution regarding voter qualifications.
Llewellyn summarized his conclusion: businesses such as corporations, partnerships, or companies are not "persons" for the purposes of voter eligibility under the cited provisions, so the Town could not validly amend its charter to allow businesses to vote without conflicting with state constitutional requirements. The minutes say the Mayor will forward the attorney's response to the Greater Friendsville Business Association and meeting attendees.
The attorney's opinion is recorded in the meeting packet as Appendix A and appears in the minutes distributed to council members and the public. The minutes do not record any formal council action taken on the opinion at the Oct. 7 meeting; the record indicates the mayor shared the email and planned to circulate it to local business stakeholders.
What happens next: The mayor indicated he would email the town's response and the attorney's explanation to the Greater Friendsville Business Association and others who had inquired. The minutes show no subsequent vote or charter amendment action was taken at the Oct. 7 meeting.
