Florida Senate - 2024                                     SB 724
       
       
        
       By Senator Davis
       
       
       
       
       
       5-00846-24                                             2024724__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to candidate qualifying; creating s.
    3         99.013, F.S.; providing eligibility requirements for
    4         persons seeking to qualify for nomination as a
    5         candidate of a political party or as a candidate with
    6         no party affiliation; providing that certain entities
    7         may bring an action for declaratory and injunctive
    8         relief based on a certain claim; prohibiting a person
    9         from qualifying as a candidate for election and from
   10         having his or her name appear on the ballot under
   11         certain circumstances; providing an effective date.
   12          
   13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   14  
   15         Section 1. Section 99.013, Florida Statutes, is created to
   16  read:
   17         99.013 Eligibility to qualify for nomination as a candidate
   18  of a political party or candidate with no party affiliation.—
   19         (1)(a) A person seeking to qualify for nomination as a
   20  candidate of a political party must have been a registered
   21  member of the political party for which the person is seeking
   22  nomination as a candidate for at least 365 days before the
   23  beginning of qualifying preceding the general election for which
   24  the person seeks to qualify.
   25         (b) A person seeking to qualify for nomination as a
   26  candidate with no party affiliation must be registered without
   27  any party affiliation and may not have been a registered member
   28  of any political party for at least 365 days before the
   29  beginning of qualifying preceding the general election for which
   30  the person seeks to qualify.
   31         (2) A political party, in addition to any other person or
   32  entity with standing, may bring an action for declaratory and
   33  injunctive relief based on a claim that a person seeking to
   34  qualify for nomination as a candidate of such political party or
   35  as a candidate with no party affiliation did not comply with
   36  this section.
   37         (3) If a final judgment of a circuit court determines that
   38  a person did not comply with this section, the person may not be
   39  qualified as a candidate for election and his or her name may
   40  not appear on the ballot.
   41         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.