When an appropriate representation unit has been determined, the Director shall give adequate and timely notice of the determination to each employee in the newly established representation unit and shall arrange for a secret ballot certification election. Representation elections shall be conducted by the State or, if the State is unable to conduct the elections, an impartial agency selected by the mutual agreement of the parties. If an agreement cannot be reached, the impartial agency shall be designated by the Director. The entity conducting the election shall be subject to the provisions of this law and the terms and conditions of such election agreement as may be reached by the parties. Except as otherwise provided, such entity shall resolve all legal issues or controversies relating to the conduct of the election. Representation elections conducted pursuant to this Section shall be by secret ballot and shall be subject to the following: All interested persons shall be given not less than 10 days notice of the time and place of the election. In the election, the employees in the unit shall be offered a choice between exclusive representation by the petitioning employee organization and no exclusive representation. If an intervener labor organization has met all of the requirements of Division 1 of this subtitle, then the ballot shall offer a choice among the petitioning employee organization, the intervener employee organization and no exclusive representation. A representative may not be certified unless it receives a majority of the valid ballots cast. In an election where none of the choices on the ballot receive a majority, a runoff election shall be conducted, in which the ballot shall provide for a selection between the two choices or parties receiving the highest and second highest number of ballots cast in said election. The State, or other entity conducting the election, shall certify the results of said election within five working days after the final tally of votes if no objection to the election is filed by any person that there has been conduct which has affected the outcome of the election. If there is a prima facie showing that an objection may be valid, the State, or other entity conducting the election, shall order the Director to set a time for hearing on the matter after due notice, such hearing to be conducted within two weeks of the date of receipt of such charge. If the State, or other entity conducting the election, determines that the outcome of the election was affected, even if by third party interference, the State, or other entity conducting the election, shall require corrective action and order a new election. If the State, or other entity conducting the election, determines that the conduct alleged did not affect the outcome of the election, the State, or other entity conducting the election, shall immediately certify the election results. No election shall be conducted pursuant to this Section in any appropriate bargaining unit within which the preceding 12-month period an election shall have been held, nor during the term of any lawful collective bargaining agreement between the employer and a labor organization, except that this restriction shall not apply to that period of time covered by any collective bargaining agreement which exceeds three years. For the purposes of this Section, extensions of agreement shall not affect the expiration date of the original agreement. Where a valid collective bargaining agreement is in existence, a petition regarding representation may be filed only during the period beginning October 1 and ending on October 31 of the fiscal year in which said agreement will terminate.