§ 1-1. Requirements for Qualification as Candidate for Office of Mayor-Commissioner or City Commissioner.

(a)

Each candidate for the Office of Mayor-Commissioner or District Commissioner of the City of Orlando shall have been, at the time of qualifying as a candidate for such office, both a bona fide resident of the City of Orlando and a registered elector of the City of Orlando for at least one year prior to the date of qualifying to run for City office.

(b)

Each candidate for a City of Orlando district Commissioner seat shall have been, at the time of qualifying, both a bona fide resident and registered elector of that district of the City of Orlando for at least one year prior to qualifying. Provided, however, in the election following the decennial redistricting required by section 4-1(b) of this Chapter, district commissioner candidates shall only have to meet the requirements of subsection (a) above.

(c)

For qualifying purposes, residents of areas that are annexed into the corporate limits of the City of Orlando within one year prior to the election qualifying period shall be considered residents of the district to which their area has been annexed and shall be eligible to be a candidate for Mayor-Commissioner or City district commissioner if they have been a bona fide resident and registered elector of either the City or the annexed area for one year prior to the date of qualifying.

(d)

At the time of qualifying, candidates shall be required to submit proof satisfactory to the City Clerk that they have met the requirements of this section. If satisfactory proof is not submitted prior to the end of the qualifying period, the City Clerk shall not qualify that person for the office sought and their name shall not appear on the ballot. Satisfactory proof of having met the residency requirements of this section shall include submission all of the following applicable items for the one-year period prior to qualifying: homestead exemption documentation, residential property lease, utility bills which reflect usage of utilities at a level indicating actual residence, and Florida driver's license registration. Candidates may also submit to the City Clerk any other documentation that shows their intention to be a bona fide resident at their qualifying address. Candidates must also submit documentation that they have been a registered elector as required by this section for the one-year period prior to qualifying. As a condition of qualifying, all candidates must sign a release authorizing the City Clerk to verify the information that they have submitted.

(e)

Candidates qualifying for the November 3, 2015 general election shall not be required to comply with the requirements of (a) and (b) above. Provided however, 2015 candidates for the office of Mayor-Commissioner shall be required to have been a City resident and a bona fide elector on or before February 5, 2015 and 2015 candidates for district commissioner seats must have been a City district resident and a bona fide elector of the district on or before February 5, 2015.

(Laws of Fla. ch. 75-461, § 1; Ord. of 3-9-2004, § 1, Doc. # 040126901; Ord. of 7-9-2007, § 1, Doc. # 0707091006; Ord. No. 2015-20, § 1, 5-4-2015, Doc. #1505041205)

Editor's note

Laws of Fla. ch. 75-461, § 2, repealed Laws of Fla. ch. 65-2026, from which former § 1-1, which required councilmen to be qualified and registered as freehold electors, was derived. Laws of Fla. ch. 75-461, § 1, is included herein as a new § 1-1.