Is running for Office right for you?

What is a candidate?

A candidate is defined in 97.051(5), Florida Statute, as any person to whom any one or more of the following applies:

• Any person who seeks to qualify for nomination or election by means of the petitioning process;
• Any person who seeks to qualify for election as a write-in candidate;
• Any person who 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;
• Any person who appoints a treasurer and designates a primary depository;
• Any person who files qualification papers and subscribes to a candidate’s oath as required by law.
• However, this definition does not include any candidates for a political party executive committee.

Online Resources

•   Politics the Wellstone Way

•   New Organizing Institute (NOI)

•   NOI’s Candidate Project: Should I Run?

•   Emily’s List: Making the Dough Rise (fundraising)

•   Why Don’t Women Run for Office?

Organizations that provide candidate training

•   Front Line Leaders Academy

•   New American Leaders

•   Sorensen Institute of UVA

•   Truman National Security Project

•   Wellstone

•   Running Start

•   Victory Institute

•   Democracy for America

•   Emerge America

•   Ruth’s List

•   Emily’s List

•   Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund

•   National Democratic Training Committee

•   She Should Run

Offices up for election in 2018:

County Government

Candidates filing to run for County offices qualify with the local Elections Office.

More information about candidates: Candidate Profiles & Financials.

• County Commissioner: District 2 and 4
• County Court Judges: Group 1 and 2
• School Board Member: District 1, 2 and 4
• Indian River County Hospital District: Seat 2 and 4
• Indian River Soil & Water Conservation District: Seat 3 and 5
• Indian River Mosquito Control: District 2

Multi-County and District Offices

Contact your county Supervisor of Elections to determine if any of these offices in your county will appear on the ballot in the upcoming general election.

• Governor and Lieutenant GovernorAttorney General
• Chief Financial Officer
• Commissioner of Agriculture
• State Senator (Only even numbered districts)
• State Representative (All Districts)
• State Attorney (Only 20th Judicial Circuit)
• Public Defender (Only 20th Judicial Circuit)

Federal Offices

• U.S. Senator (One of two seats)
• Representative in Congress (All Districts)