AN ACT to change the election year for the city of winston‑salem and THE ELECTION METHOD for the winston‑salem/forsyth county board of education.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  G.S. 163‑279(b), which is applicable only to the City of Winston‑Salem, is repealed.
SECTION 1.(b)  Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Section 12A of Chapter 232 of the Private Laws of 1927, as amended by Chapter 53, Session Laws of 1965, as amended by the Ordinance of January 6, 2003 adopted under Part 4 of Article 5 of Chapter 160A of the General Statutes, reads as rewritten:
"1. Election of Mayor. The time for election of Mayor shall be as provided in Section 12J of this Charter.  The mayor shall be a resident of the City of Winston-Salem.  The Mayor shall be elected by all the qualified voters of the City.  Except as provided in Section 12J of this Charter, the Mayor shall serve for  a term of four years commencing  as provided by G.S. 160A-68 at the organizational meeting of the city council following the election.
2. Election of City Council.  The time for election of city council members shall be as provided in Section 12J of this Charter.  There shall be elected eight council members for the City of Winston-Salem, who shall hold their office until their successors are qualified, of whom one shall be elected from North Ward, one from Northeast Ward, one from East Ward, One from Southeast Ward, one from South Ward, one from Southeast Ward, one from West Ward, and one from Northwest Ward.  Each council member shall be a resident of the ward in which elected, and shall be elected by the qualified voters of the council member's ward only.  Except as provided in Section 12J of this Charter, city council members shall serve for terms of four years commencing as provided by G.S. 160A-68 at the organizational meeting of the city council following the election."
SECTION 1.(c)  Section 12B of Chapter 232 of the Private Laws of 1927, as amended by Chapter 13, Session Laws of 1965, as amended by the Ordinance of January 6, 2003 adopted under Part 4 of Article 5 of Chapter 160A of the General Statutes, reads as rewritten:
"Sec. 12B. Primary elections.
1. Generally.  Primary elections to nominate candidates of each qualified political party for mayor and for members of the city council shall be held as needed and shall be conducted in the same manner and pursuant to the same statutes, rules, and regulations as other primary elections for local offices conducted under the provisions of Article 23 of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes of North Carolina, except that to the extent such statutes, rules, and regulations differ from or conflict with the provisions of the Charter of the City of Winston-Salem, the latter shall control. In the event of a tie vote between two or more candidates, all of whom received the same highest vote for party nomination, the city executive committee or other duly constituted administrative body of the political party of said candidates shall determine which shall be the nominee.
2.  Time of holding.  The time for holding primaries shall be as provided in Section 12J of this Charter."
SECTION 1.(d)   The Charter of the City of Winston‑Salem, being Chapter 232 of the Private Laws of 1927, is amended by adding a new section to read:
"Sec. 12J.  Time of Election; Terms.
(a)	In 2013, the primary and election for mayor and council members shall be held on the dates provided in G.S. 163‑279(a)(2).
(b)	The terms of the mayor and council members of the City of Winston‑Salem elected in 2013 expire at the organizational meeting after the 2016 regular municipal election.
(c)	Notwithstanding G.S. 163‑279, in 2016 and quadrennially thereafter, primaries and elections for mayor and city council shall be held at the same time as for county officers as provided in G.S. 163‑1."
SECTION 2.(a)  Section 2(a)(5)(iii) of Chapter 112, Session Laws of 1961, as amended by Chapter 466, Session Laws of 1985, by Section 2 of Chapter 696 of the 1991 Session Laws, and by S.L. 2009‑72, reads as rewritten:
"(iii) Notwithstanding the provisions of G.S. 115C‑37, the Winston‑Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education shall be elected on a partisan basis at the time of the general election in each even‑numbered year as terms expire. Except as provided by this act, the election shall be conducted in accordance with the applicable provisions of Chapters 115C and 163 of the General Statutes. Candidates for election to the Winston‑Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education shall be nominated at the same time and in the same manner as other county officers. Each candidate for the Winston‑Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education shall, at the time of filing notice of candidacy, certify in writing the exact location of that candidate's residence and that the candidate is a bona fide resident thereof."
SECTION 2.(b)  Section 2(a)(5)(ii) of Chapter 112, Session Laws of 1961, as rewritten by Chapter 466, Session Laws of 1985 and Chapter 696 of the 1991 Session Laws, and by S.L. 2009‑72, reads as rewritten:
"(ii)	Effective on the first Monday in December 1986, the Winston‑Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education shall be composed of nine members. In the 2010 election, nine persons shall be elected to the Winston‑Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education for four‑year terms. The terms of those elected in 2010 for two‑year terms shall instead expire on the first Monday in December of 2014. In 2014:
(1)	Two persons shall be elected from District 1.
(2)	Four persons shall be elected from District 2.(3)	Three members shall be elected at large from all of Forsyth County.
Successors to those elected in 2014 shall serve four‑year terms.
For an at‑large seat, any qualified voter of Forsyth County is eligible to vote. For the district seats, only residents of the district shall be eligible to be candidates and only qualified voters of the district shall be eligible to vote.
The districts as established for the purpose of this subparagraph are for the 2010 election those established under G.S. 115C‑37(i), which are subject to change for the election in 2014 after the return of the 2010 census."
SECTION 3.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2011.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 15th day of June, 2011.

	s/	 Walter H. Dalton
	 President of the Senate

	s/	 Thom Tillis
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives