General Election Municipal General Information/How to Begin a Campaign
GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION INFORMATION
HOW TO BEGIN A CAMPAIGN
Date of Election
General: Tuesday, November 3, 2015
Runoff: Tuesday, November 17, 2015, if necessary
Qualifying
Pursuant to City Charter Section 6.03, a candidate must reside within the City and be a qualified
elector for at least one year prior to qualifying.
Offices Up For Election Incumbents Term Of Office
Mayor: Philip Levine Two (2) years
Commissioner Group IV: Jonah Wolfson (Term Limited) Four (4) years
Commissioner Group V: Edward L. Tobin (Term Limited) Four (4) years
Commissioner Group VI: Deede Weithorn (Term Limited) Four (4) years
Salary
Mayor: $10,000 per year and $6,000 vehicle allowance
Commissioner: $6,000 per year and $6,000 vehicle allowance
Qualifying Period
Dates: Tuesday, September 8, 2015 through Friday, September 11, 2015
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Location: Miami Beach City Hall, 1700 Convention Center Drive, 1st Floor, Office of the City Clerk
Total Qualifying Fee
Mayor: $1,360
Commissioner: $1,020
The total qualifying fee is comprised of a Municipal Qualifying Fee of 7.5% of the salary of the office
the candidate seeks (see Charter Section 6.03), plus a State Assessment Election Fee of 1.0% of
the salary of the office the candidate seeks (see Section 99.093 (1) Florida Statutes).
Any person seeking to qualify for election who is unable to pay the State Election Assessment Fee
without imposing an undue burden on personal resources or on resources otherwise available to
him or her shall, upon written certification of such inability given under oath to the City Clerk, be
exempt from paying the State Election Assessment Fee (see Section 99.093 (2) Florida Statutes).
An Affidavit of Undue Burden for Municipal Candidates is included in the “Most Commonly Used
Forms” section of this handbook.
The qualifying fee MUST be paid by a check drawn on the candidate’s campaign account. The
check from the campaign account is to be made payable to the City of Miami Beach for the total
amount due.
Qualifying By Petition In Lieu Of Paying The Municipal Qualifying Fee
A petition in lieu of paying the Municipal Qualifying Fee shall be filed with the City Clerk no later than
noon of the 14th day prior to the first day of qualifying as a candidate for such office. Said petition
approving his/her candidacy must be signed by sufficient qualified and registered voters to constitute
not less than 2% of the number of voters as the same shall be on the date sixty (60) days prior to the
first day of qualifying as a candidate for office. A City of Miami Beach Petition in Lieu of Qualifying
Fee form is included in the “Most Commonly Used Forms” section of this handbook.
In the event the Miami-Dade County Elections Department has not issued its certificate verifying the
required number of valid signatures on the subject qualifying petition by 5:00 p.m. on the second
day of the City’s four-day qualifying period, the City’s 7½% qualifying fee shall be wai ved by the City
in the event the subject candidate should otherwise qualify for office pursuant to Section 6.03 of the
City Charter. See Section 6.03 of the City Charter.
The First Two Documents A Person Must File With The City Clerk To Become A Candidate
FORM DS-DE 9 - Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign
Depository for Candidates
FORM DS-DE 84 - Statement of Candidate
The candidate must file form DS-DE 84, Statement of Candidate, with the City Clerk within ten (10)
days after the candidate files form DS-DE 9, Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation
of Campaign Depository for Candidates.
The Candidate must file Form 1, Statement of Financial Interest; Form 9, Quarterly Gift Disclosure,
Form DS-DE 25, Candidate Oath; and the City Of Miami Beach Oath/Affirmation at the same time
he/she files their qualifying papers.
At the time of qualifying, all candidates must present a government issued picture identification and
their Voter Information Card.
Campaign Account
A campaign account must be opened before qualifying. The qualifying fee MUST be paid with a
check drawn on the candidate’s campaign account.
Fingerprints / Photograph
Prior to qualifying as a candidate, it will be necessary for each candidate to go to the Police Station
Records Section, at 1100 Washington Avenue, for the purpose of being fingerprinted and
photographed as required by Section 6.03 of the City Charter. Please contact the Records Section
at 305.673.7100 for an appointment.
City of Miami Beach Oath or Affirmation
All candidates qualifying for office shall have taken, signed and subscribed to an oath or affirmation
in writing in which he/she shall state (1) the title of the office for which he/she is a c andidate; (2) that
he/she is a qualified elector of the City of Miami Beach, Florida, and has resided in the City at least
one year prior to qualifying; (3) his/her legal residence, by street and number; (4) that he/she is
qualified under the ordinances (including Miami Beach City Code Chapter 38 governing "Elections")
and Charter of the City of Miami Beach, Florida, to hold the office for which he/she is a candidate.
Campaign Treasurer’s Reports
Each campaign treasurer designated by a candidate shall file Campaign Treasurer’s Reports of all
contributions received, and all expenditures made, by or on behalf of such candidate. Campaign
Treasurer’s Reports shall be filed on the dates listed in the “Important Dates and Deadlines” section
of this handbook. Failure to file a Campaign Treasurer’s Report on the designated due date will
subject the candidate to a fine for each late day as provided in Section 106.07 (8)(b), Florida
Statutes. Such fine shall be paid only from personal funds of the candidate.
Campaign Treasurer’s Reports shall be filed with the Office of the City Clerk. Campaign Treasure’s
Reports shall be filed no later than 5 p.m. of the day designated; however, any report postmarked by
the United States Postal Service no later than midnight of the day designated is deemed to have
been filed in a timely manner. Any Campaign Treasurer’s Report received by the Offic e of the City
Clerk within five (5) days after the designated due date that was delivered by the United States
Postal Service is deemed timely filed, unless it has a postmark that indicates that the report was
mailed after the designated due date. A certificate of mailing obtained from and dated by the United
States Postal Service at the time of mailing, or a receipt from an established courier company,
which bears a date on or before the date on which the report is due, suffices as proof of mailing in a
timely manner.
In any reporting period during which a candidate has not received funds, made any contributions, or
expended any reportable funds, the filing of the required report for that period is waived.
Candidates, must nevertheless timely file a Waiver of Report, Form DS-DE 87, with the Office of the
City Clerk.
Contact Information
The Office of the City Clerk must be able to contact a candidate and/or Campaign Treasurer at all
times in case of questions or last minute instructions. Please ensure that the Office of the City Clerk
has your accurate telephone number, mailing address and e-mail address.
Campaign Headquarters
Each candidate may have four campaign headquarters, which shall be registered with the City
Clerk. See Section 138-134 of the Miami Beach City Code.
Poll Watcher Information
Pursuant to Florida Statues 101.131, each candidate may have one watcher in each polling room or
early voting area at any one time during the election. Each candidate requesting to have poll
watchers shall designate, in writing, utilizing Form DS-DE 125, before noon of the second Tuesday
preceding the election, poll watchers for each polling room on Election Day and before noon at least
14 days before early voting begins for early voting sites. Please submit Form DS-DE 125 to the City
Clerk.
No candidate or sheriff, deputy sheriff, police officer or other law enforcement officer may be
designated as a poll watcher.
Election Results
The Miami-Dade County Elections Department’s website is the best and most up to the minute
source for election night results. On election night, there will be a link on the Elections Department’s
homepage that takes viewers directly to the results. Viewers may filter the races that appear on
screen to only those races of interest to the viewer. The Miami-Dade County Elections Department
homepage is located at http://www.miamidade.gov/elections/
Additional Information
For additional information, please refer to the Office of the City Clerk’s Election Webpage located at
http://miamibeachfl.gov/cityclerk/elections/scroll.aspx?id=31214
Frequently Dialed Telephone Numbers
Office of the City Clerk
Rafael E. Granado, City Clerk 305.673.7411
Liliam Hatfield, Assistant City Clerk 305.673.7411
Miami-Dade County Elections Department
Main Number 305.499-VOTE (8683)
TTY Number 305.499.8480
Florida Division of Elections
Main Number 850.245.6200
Fax Number 850.245.6217