|
|
The 2025 Florida Statutes
|
|
|
|
|
F.S. 105.031105.031 Qualification; filing fee; candidate’s oath; items required to be filed.—(1) TIME OF QUALIFYING.—Except for candidates for judicial office, nonpartisan candidates for multicounty office shall qualify with the Division of Elections of the Department of State and nonpartisan candidates for countywide or less than countywide office shall qualify with the supervisor of elections. Candidates for judicial office other than the office of county court judge shall qualify with the Division of Elections of the Department of State, and candidates for the office of county court judge shall qualify with the supervisor of elections of the county. Candidates for judicial office shall qualify no earlier than noon of the 120th day, and no later than noon of the 116th day, before the primary election. Candidates for the office of school board member shall qualify no earlier than noon of the 71st day, and no later than noon of the 67th day, before the primary election. Filing shall be on forms provided for that purpose by the Division of Elections and furnished by the appropriate qualifying officer. Any person other than a write-in candidate who qualifies within the time prescribed in this subsection shall be entitled to have his or her name printed on the ballot. (2) FILING IN GROUPS OR DISTRICTS.—Candidates shall qualify in groups or districts where multiple offices are to be filled. (3) QUALIFYING FEE.—Each candidate qualifying for election to a judicial office or the office of school board member, except write-in judicial or school board candidates, shall, during the time for qualifying, pay to the officer with whom he or she qualifies a qualifying fee, which shall consist of a filing fee and an election assessment, or qualify by the petition process. The amount of the filing fee is 3 percent of the annual salary of the office sought. The amount of the election assessment is 1 percent of the annual salary of the office sought. The Department of State shall transfer all filing fees to the Department of Legal Affairs for deposit in the Elections Commission Trust Fund. The supervisor of elections shall forward all filing fees to the Elections Commission Trust Fund. The election assessment shall be deposited into the Elections Commission Trust Fund. The annual salary of the office for purposes of computing the qualifying fee shall be computed by multiplying 12 times the monthly salary authorized for such office as of July 1 immediately preceding the first day of qualifying. This subsection does not apply to candidates qualifying for retention to judicial office. (4) CANDIDATE’S OATH.—(a) All candidates for the office of school board member shall subscribe to the oath as prescribed in s. 99.021. (b) All candidates for judicial office shall subscribe to an oath or affirmation in writing to be filed with the appropriate qualifying officer upon qualifying. A printed copy of the oath or affirmation shall be furnished to the candidate by the qualifying officer and shall be in substantially the following form:State of Florida County of Before me, an officer authorized to administer oaths, personally appeared (please print name as you wish it to appear on the ballot) , to me well known, who, being sworn, says he or she: is a candidate for the judicial office of ; that his or her legal residence is County, Florida; that he or she is a qualified elector of the state and of the territorial jurisdiction of the court to which he or she seeks election; that he or she is qualified under the constitution and laws of Florida to hold the judicial office to which he or she desires to be elected or in which he or she desires to be retained; that he or she has qualified for no other public office in the state, the term of which office or any part thereof runs concurrent to the office he or she seeks; that he or she has resigned from any office which he or she is required to resign pursuant to s. 99.012, Florida Statutes; and that he or she will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Florida. (Signature of candidate) (Address of legal residence) Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of , (year) , at County, Florida. (Signature and title of officer administering oath) (c) In addition, each candidate for judicial office shall, at the time of subscribing to the oath or affirmation, state in writing whether he or she owes any outstanding fines, fees, or penalties that cumulatively exceed $250 for any violations of s. 8, Art. II of the State Constitution, the Code of Ethics for Public Officers and Employees under part III of chapter 112, any local ethics ordinance governing standards of conduct and disclosure requirements, or chapter 106. If the candidate owes any outstanding fines, fees, or penalties exceeding the threshold amount specified in this paragraph, he or she must also specify the amount owed and each entity that levied such fine, fee, or penalty. For purposes of this paragraph, any such fines, fees, or penalties that have been paid in full at the time of subscribing to the oath or affirmation are not deemed to be outstanding. (5) ITEMS REQUIRED TO BE FILED.—(a) In order for a candidate for judicial office or the office of school board member to be qualified, the following items must be received by the filing officer by the end of the qualifying period:1. Except for candidates for retention to judicial office, a properly executed check drawn upon the candidate’s campaign account in an amount not less than the fee required by subsection (3) or, in lieu thereof, the copy of the notice of obtaining ballot position pursuant to s. 105.035. If a candidate’s check is returned by the bank for any reason, the filing officer shall immediately notify the candidate and the candidate shall, the end of qualifying notwithstanding, have 48 hours from the time such notification is received, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, to pay the fee with a cashier’s check purchased from funds of the campaign account. Failure to pay the fee as provided in this subparagraph shall disqualify the candidate. 2. The candidate’s oath required by subsection (4), which must contain the name of the candidate as it is to appear on the ballot; the office sought, including the district or group number if applicable; and the signature of the candidate, duly acknowledged. 3. The loyalty oath required by s. 876.05, signed by the candidate and duly acknowledged. 4. The completed form for the appointment of campaign treasurer and designation of campaign depository, as required by s. 106.021. In addition, each candidate for judicial office, including an incumbent judge, shall file a statement with the qualifying officer, within 10 days after filing the appointment of campaign treasurer and designation of campaign depository, stating that the candidate has read and understands the requirements of the Florida Code of Judicial Conduct. Such statement shall be in substantially the following form:Statement of Candidate for Judicial Office I, (name of candidate) , a judicial candidate, have received, read, and understand the requirements of the Florida Code of Judicial Conduct. (Signature of candidate) (Date) 5. The full and public disclosure of financial interests required by s. 8, Art. II of the State Constitution or the statement of financial interests required by s. 112.3145, whichever is applicable. A public officer who has filed the full and public disclosure or statement of financial interests with the Commission on Ethics or the supervisor of elections prior to qualifying for office may file a copy of that disclosure at the time of qualifying. (b) If the filing officer receives qualifying papers that do not include all items as required by paragraph (a) prior to the last day of qualifying, the filing officer shall make a reasonable effort to notify the candidate of the missing or incomplete items and shall inform the candidate that all required items must be received by the close of qualifying. A candidate’s name as it is to appear on the ballot may not be changed after the end of qualifying. (6) Notwithstanding the qualifying period prescribed in this section, a filing officer may accept and hold qualifying papers submitted not earlier than 14 days prior to the beginning of the qualifying period, to be processed and filed during the qualifying period. History.—s. 3, ch. 71-49; s. 36, ch. 77-175; s. 1, ch. 78-260; s. 5, ch. 79-365; s. 54, ch. 79-400; s. 17, ch. 81-105; s. 10, ch. 83-251; s. 1, ch. 89-152; s. 34, ch. 89-338; s. 5, ch. 91-107; s. 630, ch. 95-147; s. 2, ch. 95-156; s. 13, ch. 97-13; s. 13, ch. 99-6; s. 2, ch. 99-326; s. 2, ch. 99-355; s. 23, ch. 2002-17; s. 65, ch. 2005-277; s. 21, ch. 2005-286; s. 40, ch. 2007-30; s. 4, ch. 2010-16; s. 51, ch. 2011-40; s. 2, ch. 2023-46; s. 43, ch. 2023-120.
| |
Annotations, Discussions, Cases:
Cases Citing Statute 105.031
Total Results: 27
342 So. 2d 972
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Feb 17, 1977 | Docket: 421021
Cited 15 times | Published
Court of the Second Judicial Circuit finding Section 105.031(4)(a), Florida Statutes, unconstitutional,
795 F. Supp. 1525, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8829, 1992 WL 136684
District Court, M.D. Florida | Filed: Jun 2, 1992 | Docket: 330233
Cited 14 times | Published
the annual salary of the office. See Fla.Stat. § 105.031 (Supp.1992). This qualifying fee amounts to approximately
266 So. 2d 345
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Aug 9, 1972 | Docket: 1708659
Cited 13 times | Published
the absolute statutory language of Fla. Stat. § 105.031(4) (b) [F.S.A.] renders Candidate Klein's oath
990 So. 2d 688, 2008 WL 4327060
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Sep 24, 2008 | Docket: 1422422
Cited 6 times | Published
Circuit Court Judge in Broward County, Florida. See § 105.031, Fla. Stat. (2007). In qualifying to run for office
42 So. 3d 795, 35 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 453, 2010 Fla. LEXIS 1118, 2010 WL 2720459
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Jul 12, 2010 | Docket: 1647443
Cited 5 times | Published
by regular election this year. Pursuant to section 105.031, Florida Statutes, the time for qualifying
983 So. 2d 526, 2008 WL 2082126
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: May 19, 2008 | Docket: 1756795
Cited 5 times | Published
involuntarily retired as of midnight, April 30, 2008); § 105.031, Fla. Stat. (2007) ("Candidates for judicial office
824 So. 2d 132, 2002 WL 1472811
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Jul 10, 2002 | Docket: 1435606
Cited 5 times | Published
period had not yet occurred. See id. at 285; § 105.031(1), Fla. Stat. (2000).
254 So. 3d 604
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Aug 23, 2018 | Docket: 7725970
Cited 3 times | Published
check drawn upon his campaign account. We find section
105.031(5)(a)1., Florida Statutes (2017), is unambiguous
208 So. 3d 189, 2016 Fla. App. LEXIS 15905
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Oct 26, 2016 | Docket: 4482647
Cited 3 times | Published
statutory qualifying requirements set forth in section 105.031, Florida Statutes (2016).
As a preliminary
937 So. 2d 1166, 2006 WL 2521401
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Sep 1, 2006 | Docket: 1513157
Cited 3 times | Published
for payment of his filing fee as required by § 105.031(5)(a)(1) is not a properly executed check drawn
359 F. Supp. 304, 1973 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13927
District Court, M.D. Florida | Filed: Apr 23, 1973 | Docket: 1181922
Cited 3 times | Published
office sought. Fla.Stat. §§ 99.061, 99.092, and § 105.031, F.S.A. Prior Three Judge Federal District Courts
788 So. 2d 256, 2000 WL 33258310
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Aug 30, 2000 | Docket: 1685134
Cited 2 times | Published
such office
. . . .
(Emphasis supplied).
Section 105.031(4)(b), Florida Statutes (1999), mandates that
704 So. 2d 152, 1997 WL 765659
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Dec 8, 1997 | Docket: 1354864
Cited 2 times | Published
collected shall be transferred to the Trust Fund. Section 105.031, Florida Statutes (1995), provided that each
254 So. 3d 472
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Aug 24, 2018 | Docket: 7742947
Cited 1 times | Published
“name” in the context of the
statute:
Section 105.031(4)(b) instructs the candidate to “please print
39 So. 3d 416, 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 9198, 2010 WL 2675351
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jun 24, 2010 | Docket: 60294882
Cited 1 times | Published
Levey, 990 So.2d at 692-93. We recognized that section 105.031(4)(b) contemplated that a candidate might properly
Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit | Filed: Mar 11, 2025 | Docket: 67417924
Published
Argued: Oct 11, 2024
county-wide primary elections. See, e.g., Fla. Stat. § 105.031(1)
(explaining “nonpartisan candidates
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Feb 27, 2024 | Docket: 68286006
Published
party argued the election was governed by section 105.031, Florida Statutes
(2016). Wright, 200 So. 3d
257 So. 3d 168
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Nov 13, 2018 | Docket: 8168696
Published
candidate’s campaign
account” as required by section 105.031(5)(a)1., Florida Statutes
(2017). Here, there
253 So. 3d 89
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Aug 8, 2018 | Docket: 7618362
Published
Financial
Disclosure (Form 6) required by Fla. Stat.
§105.031(5)(a)5. It is undisputed that Hoover had
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jul 26, 2018 | Docket: 7520994
Published
(2018).
3 Art. V, § 8, Fla. Const.
4 § 105.031(1), Fla. Stat. (2017).
200 So. 3d 765, 41 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 387, 2016 Fla. LEXIS 2044, 2016 WL 4945053
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Sep 15, 2016 | Docket: 4422290
Published
subparagraph shall disqualify the candidate.
§ 105.031(5)(a) 1., Fla. Stat. (2016); see also Ch.2011-40
146 So. 3d 1224, 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 14777
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Sep 22, 2014 | Docket: 1310544
Published
same session law, the Legislature amended section 105.031, governing qualifying for nonpartisan offices
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Sep 2, 2014 | Docket: 1157819
Published
same session law, the Legislature amended section 105.031,
governing qualifying for nonpartisan offices
99 So. 3d 1290, 2012 Fla. App. LEXIS 19844, 2012 WL 5689272
District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Nov 16, 2012 | Docket: 60312920
Published
qualifying fees for unopposed judicial candidates. See § 105.031, Fla. Stat. We reject those arguments. We write
928 So. 2d 1218, 31 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 269, 2006 Fla. LEXIS 814, 2006 WL 1173133
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: May 4, 2006 | Docket: 64844634
Published
is from May 8, 2006, through May 12, 2006. See § 105.031(1), Fla. Stat. (2005) (“Candidates for judicial
804 So. 2d 1243, 26 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 829, 2001 Fla. LEXIS 2309, 2001 WL 1628487
Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Dec 20, 2001 | Docket: 64811723
Published
oath is completed and filed.7
Pursuant to section 105.031(4)(b), Florida Statutes (2000), all candidates
Florida Attorney General Reports | Filed: Jun 10, 1976 | Docket: 3258378
Published
Division of Elections." (Emphasis supplied.) Section 105.031 goes on to specify the manner in which candidates
