03-Ia-MemorandumMEMORANDUM
DATE: February 2015
TO: All Potential Candidates for Elected Office in Atlantic Beach
FROM: Donna L. Bartle, CMC
City Clerk
SUBJECT: 2015 Election
_____________________________________________________________________________
The Candidate’s Notebook is being provided to help you meet the many requirements and
deadlines in the campaign process. A detailed Election Calendar can be found in Section II.
Please thoroughly review the material provided in the Candidate’s Notebook and if you have
questions, do not hesitate to call me at 247-5809.
The following is a summary of pertinent information.
1. The City Clerk serves as the Supervisor of Elections for Atlantic Beach Municipal
Elections and all questions should be directed to this office first, preferably to the City
Clerk personally. Since the City Clerk is the filing officer, all forms are to be filed with
the City Clerk at City Hall, 800 Seminole Road, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233.
2. ELECTION DATES:
The Primary Election will be held on Tuesday, August 25, 2015.
The General Election, if required for a run-off, will be held on Tuesday, November 3,
2015.
3. OFFICES UP FOR ELECTION:
Mayor - Seat 1 (2-year term) – At Large- Currently held by Carolyn Woods.
Commissioner - Seat 2 (4-year term)- District 1308 (Formerly 13H)- Currently held by
Maria Mark
Commissioner - Seat 3 (4-year term)- District 1307 (Formerly 13GS) - Currently held
by Mark Beckenbach.
4. Candidates must be registered voters of Duval County, must have been a full-time resident
for at least one year in the district he/she wishes to represent prior to qualifying and may not
hold any other elective office. Note: The mayor has no district requirement.
5. TO BECOME A FILED CANDIDATE YOU MUST:
a. Appoint a Campaign Treasurer (F.S. 106.021(1)(a)) and designate a campaign
depository (F.S. 106.021 (1)(b)) by filing a Form DSDE 9 with the City Clerk.
(i) The treasurer must be a registered voter in the State of Florida.
Election 2015- Memorandum to Candidates Page 2 of 3
(ii) The candidate may also serve as his/her own campaign treasurer.
b. WITHIN TEN (10) DAYS OF FILING APPOINTMENT OF CAMPAIGN
TREASURER, CANDIDATE MUST FILE STATEMENT OF CANDIDATE
FORM (F.S. 106.023) by filing a Form DS-DE 84.
6. Open a campaign depository authorized to do business in the State of Florida pursuant to
F.S. 106.021 in an account designated “(Name of Candidate) Campaign Account”.
(Form DSDE 9 is required to be filed with the City Clerk before opening the
campaign bank account.) The bank will want a copy of the completed Form DSDE 9.
***ALL FORMS MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK***
7. TO FILE PETITIONS PRIOR TO QUALIFYING YOU MUST:
a. Be a FILED CANDIDATE (Have completed Item 5a above), and
PLEASE NOTE: Item 5b is required within 10 days of filing Item 5a above.
b. Submit completed petition(s) signed by at least ten (10) qualified electors of the
City. Petitions can only be circulated for FILED CANDIDATES and not before
Wednesday, May 6, 2015. The deadline for filing the petitions with the City
Clerk is 5:00 pm on Friday, June 5, 2015. No nominating petition shall be
accepted unless accompanied by a signed acceptance of the nomination by the
candidate being nominated (Charter Sec. 39). Petitions will have to be verified by
the City Clerk through the Duval County Supervisor of Elections.
8. QUALIFYING PERIOD:
Qualifying period begins at Noon on Monday, June 15, 2015 and will end at Noon on
Friday, June 19, 2015.
Items 9d, 9e and 9f below are considered “qualifying documents” or “qualifying papers”
and must be filed as one instrument during the qualifying period with the City Clerk, at
City Hall, 800 Seminole Road, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233. It is the candidate’s
responsibility to ensure that qualifying papers are timely received in that office and
complete.
9. TO QUALIFY AS A CANDIDATE YOU MUST:
a. Be a FILED CANDIDATE (Have completed Item 5a and 5b above),
b. Have completed Item 6,
c. Have completed Item 7b,
d. Take and subscribe to an oath in writing in accordance with F.S. 99.021 by
completing Form DSDE 25,
Election 2015- Memorandum to Candidates Page 3 of 3
e. Submit Statement of Financial Interests (CE Form 1)(F.S. 112.3145 (2)(a)), and
f. Pay an election assessment fee of 1% of the salary of the office being sought (F.S.
99.093 (1))
The assessment fees are as follows:
Mayor- Seat 1- $95.81
City Commissioner Seats 2 through-5- $58.31
NOTE: Any candidate who is unable to pay the election assessment without
imposing an undue burden on his personal resources or on resources otherwise
available to him shall, upon written certification of such inability given under oath
to the City Clerk, be exempt from paying the election assessment (F.S. 99.093(2)).
The City of Atlantic Beach requires no filing fees.
10. Please pay close attention to the dates that Treasurer’s Reports (Forms DSDE 12,
DSDE 13, & DSDE 14) are due and be sure to turn them in on time. The due dates are
listed on the Election Calendar in Section II of the Candidate Packet. Penalties for all
late filings will be assessed in accordance with F.S. 106.07(8)(b). FLORIDA
STATUTES PROVIDES NO EXCEPTIONS FOR LATE FILING.
11. No contribution may be accepted after 12:00 midnight, Thursday, August 20, 2015 for
the election on August 25, 2015, or after 12:00 midnight, Thursday, October 29, 2015 for
the election on November 3, 2015.
12. The deadline to submit names of poll watchers for the Primary Election is Noon on
Tuesday, August 11, 2015 and for the General Election, if needed, is Noon on Tuesday,
October 20, 2015. Information regarding the procedure will be available on the Duval
County Supervisor of Elections website, www.duvalelections.com.
13. Pursuant to City Charter Sec. 37, “All elections for the office of commissioner and
mayor-commissioner shall be conducted on a nonpartisan basis without any designation
of political party affiliation”. Remember this when you fill out forms, ads, disclaimers
and design your campaign signs. Do not indicate or reference party at all, not even as
“no party affiliation” which is not the same as nonpartisan.