Washington County Supervisor of Elections > 2020 Becoming A Candidate

2020

BECOMING A CANDIDATE IN WASHINGTON COUNTY

2020 ELECTION DATES

ELECTION ELECTION DAY BOOK CLOSING*

Presidential Preference Primary March 17, 2020 February 18, 2020

Primary Election August 18, 2020 July 20, 2020

General Election November 3, 2020 October 5, 2020
*New voter registration & party change deadline

ON THE BALLOT IN 2020

The following offices will qualify with the Washington County Supervisor of Elections:

County & Special District Offices
Sheriff
                        Clerk of Circuit Court and Comptroller
                        Supervisor of Elections
                        Tax Collector
                        Property Appraiser
                        County Commissioner, Districts 1, 3 & 5
                        Superintendent of Schools
                        Orange Hill Soil and Water Conservation, Districts 1, 3 & 5
                        School Board Member, Districts 2 & 3

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

County Commissioner Partisan Office Term 4 Years	School Board NonPartisan Office, Term 4 Years	Judicial NonPartisan Office, Term 6 Years	Special District NonPartisan Office, Term 4 Years
Candidates must reside in the district for which they are qualifying at the time of being elected to office.	Candidates must reside in the district for which they are qualifying at the time of qualifying.	Candidates must reside in the district for which they are qualifying at the time of assuming office. *	Candidates must reside in the district for which they are qualifying at the time of qualifying

Per FS 99.021 and DE 94-04, March 3, 1994 Opinion from the Division of Election / Qualifying for Selected Offices
Must Be Met; Residency, DE 78-31, DE 92-10 & DE 94-04

* Advisory Opinion to the Governor, 192 So. 2d 757 (Fla. 1966); Ops. Div. Elect. 78-3 (August 3, 1978), and 92-1- (June 24, 1992).

DEFINITIONS

Filing Officer	The election official to whom a candidate submits his qualifying papers and campaign reports: for county-wide offices, the filing officer is the Washington County Supervisor of Elections; for multi-county, state or federal offices, the filing officer is the Florida Department of State (F.S. 99.061). Municipal candidates file with their City Clerk.
In-Kind Contribution	A gift of goods, services or anything having attributable monetary value to a campaign, the value of which is determined by the person making the contribution (F.S. 103.011, 106.55).
Non-Partisan Office	An office for which a candidate is prohibited from campaigning or qualifying for an election or retention in office based on party affiliation (F.S 97.021).
Petition Process	A method of qualifying for office which requires obtaining a predetermined number of voter signatures on petitions (F.S. 99.095).
Political Advertisement	A paid expression in any communications media, whether radio, television, newspaper, magazine, periodical, campaign literature, direct mail or display or by means other than the spoken work in direct conversation, which supports or opposes any candidate, elected public official or issue (F.S. 106.011).
Qualifying Period	The dates set by law during which the final paperwork and a qualifying fee (if required) is filed with the candidate’s filing officer (F.S. 99.061).

WHAT IS A CANDIDATE?

A candidate is defined in 97.021(4) & 106.011(16), Florida Statutes, as any person who:

Seeks to qualify for nomination or election by means of a petitioning process;
Seeks to qualify for election as a write-i-candidate;
Receives contributions or makes expenditures or gives his or her consent for any other person to receive contributions or make expenditures with a view to bringing about his or her nomination or election to, or retention in, public office;
Appoints a treasurer and designates a primary depository; or
Files qualification papers and subscribes to a candidate’s oath as required by law.

WHO CAN BE A CANDIDATE?

Candidates for county and special district offices must be registered voters in Washington County. Those seeking a partisan office may not have been a registered member of any other political party for 365 days before the beginning of qualifying preceding the general election for which the person seeks to qualify (June 16, 2019).

If required, one’s current position or office must be resigned under the “resign to run” law and in accordance with section 99.012(3), Florida Statutes.

PRE-FILING FORMS

Candidates can file their DS-DE 9 and DS-DE 84 at any time before qualifying week. Nothing prohibits a person from announcing his or her intention to become a candidate prior to filing a Form DS-DE 9, as long as no contributions and expenditures have been made and a bank account has not been opened.

Form DS-DE 9, Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository

MUST be filed with the filing officer prior to opening the campaign banking account.
DO NOT collect contributions or make expenditures until the form is filed.
This form is not effective until fully completed, signed and filed with the filing officer.
This form is not considered “filed” upon mailing.

Exception: Special district candidates who do not collect contributions and whose only expense is the signature verification fee for the petition method or qualifying fee are not required to file the DS-DE 9 (99.061(3)).

DO NOT OPEN YOUR CAMPAIGN BANK ACCOUNT UNTIL YOU FILE THE DS-DE 9 FORM WITH OUR OFFICE!

QUALIFYING BY PETITION METHOD

Local and judicial candidates will need 158 valid signatures.
Special district candidates will need 25 valid signatures.

A signature verification fee of $0.10 (ten cents) per each petition to be verified must be paid in advance out of the candidate’s campaign account or petty cash (except for certain special district candidates). The candidate will receive a certification once petition requirements have been met. The petition certification is required during the official qualifying period. Write-I candidates are not required to collect petitions or pay a qualifying fee.

PETITION SUBMISSION DEADLINE:

Candidates for local office must submit the required number of valid petitions to the Supervisor of Elections prior to NOON on May 11, 2020.

It is recommended that you plan to collect more petitions than the requirement and submit them to the Elections Office in batches. We will verify the petitions as you collect them and provide a running total. Do not wait until the last minute to submit petitions! Candidates who fail to qualify by the petition method will be required to pay the qualifying fee.

QUALIFYING BY FEE

Any candidate, who does not obtain a Petition Certification in May 2020, must pay the qualifying fee to the Supervisor of Elections by the end of the qualifying period. The total amount of the fee is based upon a percentage of the annual salary of the office sought. A filing fee of 3% and an election assessment fee of 1% must be paid by all candidates for county office who qualify by fee method. Partisan candidates pay an additional 2% party assessment fee. Special districts pay $25.00. Write-in candidates pay no fee and are not required to obtain the petition certification.

A properly executed check drawn upon candidate’s campaign account and signed by the campaign treasurer must be used to pay the qualifying fee.

WHAT’S MY QUALIFYING FEE?

6%
of annual salary

4%
of annual salary

$25

Partisan candidates
for partisan offices

Nonpartisan candidate
for partisan office
and all nonpartisan offices

Special district offices

Write-in candidates for any
office

QUALIFYING PERIODS

Candidates for county offices and special districts must file their qualifying paperwork and pay the qualifying fee (if required)
at the Supervisor of Elections Office. If mailed, items required for qualifying must be received by the end of the qualifying period.

LOCAL CANDIDATE QUALIFYING PERIOD (Excluding County Judge):

When: Between Noon, June 8, 2020 – Noon, June 12, 2020
Qualifying papers will be accepted beginning May 25, 2020, pursuant to Section 99.061(8), F.S.

Where: Washington County Supervisor of Elections Office
1331 South Blvd., Suite 900, Chipley, FL 32428

WHAT DO I NEED TO FILE DURING QUALIFYING?

Pursuant to Section 99.061(7), Florida Statutes, all items required for qualifying must be received in CORRECT and COMPLETE
order by the end of the qualifying period, otherwise you will not be deemed a qualified candidate.

The following items must be received by the Supervisor of Elections no later than the end of qualifying period at 12:00 p.m. on June 12, 2020.

Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Depository	Statement of Candidate	Loyalty Oath	Financial Disclosure	PETITIONS or FEES
FORM DS-DE 9 Must be filed before: 1. Opening bank account 2. Accepting contributions or making expenditures for the campaign 3. Collecting signed candidate petitions for verification	FORM DS-DE 84 Due within 10 calendar days of filing form DS-DE 9 You must file within the 10-day period, which includes weekends and legal holidays	Depending upon party affiliation and the type of office, file one of these forms: DS-DE 301SL DS-DE 302NP DS-DE 304SB	Full and Public Disclosure of Financial Interests for the year 2019, either Form 1 or 6 depending upon the office sought FORM 1 (special districts) FORM 6 (county offices) Available here: http://ethics.state.fl.us	PETITION CERTIFICATION Issued by SOE Petition submission deadline is May 11, 2020 OR QUALIFYING FEE Check drawn on campaign bank account correct amount
		Cannot be accepted until qualifying period
Exception: Special district candidates who do not collect contributions and whose only expense is the signature verification fee or filing fee are not required to file the DS-DE-9 [99.061(3)]. Instead they will need to complete an Affidavit of Intent.

QUALIFYING FORMS:

It is the candidate’s responsibility to obtain and complete the required forms for qualifying. The most current versions of qualifying
forms are available for download from the Division of Elections website:

Download and print your forms:
http://elections.myflorida.com/forms

It is highly recommended that all candidates and campaign treasurers download and read the Candidate and
Campaign Treasurer Handbook, published by the Division of Elections:
http://elections.myflorida.com/publications

Thank you for your interest in running for office in Washington County!
Please call or stop by the Elections Office if you have questions. We are here to help.

Freedom Rings with Every Vote