Please jgarcia [at] cityofmulberryfl.com (contact the City Clerk’s office) Monday through Thursday 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM at (863) 425-1125 ext 223 after January 20, 2026 for an appointment if you intend to run for office.
To become a candidate, you must be a registered voter in Polk County, a qualified elector in the City of Mulberry residing in the corporate limits of the City of Mulberry, a resident of the City of Mulberry continuously for six months immediately preceding the date of commencement of the term of office and hold no other public office.
Becoming a Filed Candidate
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File Form DS-DE9, Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository, per Florida Statute (F.S.) 106.021(1)(a) and F.S. 106.021(1)(b). This form:
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Shall be filed with the filing officer (City Clerk) prior to opening a campaign account.
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Is not effective until the campaign treasurer signs it and it is filed with the filing officer.
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If mailed, the effective date is not when it is mailed but is when the City Clerk receives the form.
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Shall be filed prior to the candidate accepting any contributions, making any expenditures, or authorizing any other individual to do the same on their behalf.
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Shall be filed prior to obtaining signatures on a petition for qualifying.
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File form DSDE84- Statement of Candidacy: Must be filed within 10 days of filing the DS-DE 9 being filed per Florida Statute (F.S.)106.023.
Nothing prohibits a person from announcing their intention to become a candidate prior to filing form DS-DE9 as long as no contributions are received, no expenditures are made, and no signatures are obtained on a candidate petition.
Once Form DS-DE9 is filed, candidates must begin submitting the campaign treasurer’s reports per the deadlines established in F.S. 106.07.
Filed candidates must submit a final campaign treasurer’s report within 90 days of withdrawing candidacy, becoming unopposed, being elected, or being eliminated as a candidate.
Filed candidates must then complete the qualifying process for their names to appear on the ballot.
Becoming a Qualified Candidate
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File Form DS-DE 9, (unless it was already submitted as a filed candidate) Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository per Florida Statute (F.S.) 106.021(1)(a) and F.S. 106.021(1). This form:
- Shall be filed with the filing officer (City Clerk) prior to opening a campaign account.
- Is not effective until the campaign treasurer signs it, and it is filed with the filing officer.
- If mailed, the effective date is not when it is mailed but when the filing officer receives the form.
- Shall be filed prior to the candidate accepting any contribution, making any expenditures, or authorizing any other individual to do the same on their behalf.
Nothing prohibits a person from announcing their intention to become a candidate prior to filing form DS-DE 9 as long as no contributions are received, no expenditures are made, and no signatures are obtained on a candidate petition.
Once Form DS-DE 9 is filed, the Candidate checking account must be opened.
After filing the DS-DE 9 and opening their checking account, candidates must begin submitting the campaign treasurer’s reports by the deadlines established in F.S. 106.07. The City Clerk will give each filed and/or qualified candidate a schedule of when finance reporting is due.
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File Form DS-DE 84, Statement of Candidate, within 10 days of filing form DS-DE 9 per F.S. 106.023. This form acknowledges the candidate has been provided access to and has read and understands the requirements of Chapter 106, F.S., a copy of which is included in this packet (unless it was already submitted as a filed candidate).
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Submit the Florida Commission on Ethics’ Form 6, Full and Public Disclosure of Financial Interests, per F.S. 112.3145(2)(a). This must be submitted via the Florida Commission on Ethics Electronic Financial Disclosure Management System online system. Non-incumbent candidates who do not currently hold a position requiring the filing of Form 6 must request an invitation to register to use the system. If a candidate has a qualifying exemption for their personal information to be maintained as exempt, a notarized public records exemption request must be mailed to their office at Florida Commission on Ethics, P.O. Drawer 15709, Tallahassee, Florida 32317, for the Commission to maintain the candidate’s personal identifying information as exempt. The Commission provides a form for this purpose on their website.
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Submit Form DS-DE 302NP, Candidate’s Oath, per F.S. 99.021(1)(a).
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Pay Assessment & Qualifying Fees:
Pay an election assessment equal to 1% of the salary of the office being sought per F.S. 99.093(1).
Pay the City of Mulberry Qualifying Fee of $20.00 per City Code Article III, Sec. 2-36(a).
Commissioner: $101.65 (1% of $10,164.84) + $20.00= $121.65
The check for the election assessment must be drawn on the candidate’s campaign account and be made payable to, “The City of Mulberry.” Campaign checks must contain the following information:
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Name of the campaign account of the candidate.
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Signature of the campaign treasurer or deputy treasurer.
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The exact purpose of the expenditure.
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The name of the payee.
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File a petition with signatures from at least 25 registered voters who reside within the city limits per Mulberry Charter, Chapter 2, Article II, Section 2-37. Signatures must be collected only during the qualifying period (02/10/2026 - 02/20/2026).
Unopposed, Primary and General Elections
Once a candidate files all qulaifying documents and their petition, the City Clerk’s Office staff will verify the signatures obtained dates, they are a registered voter, and that the signee lives within the Mulberry city limits.
At the end of the qualifying period, the City Clerk will announce all candidates who have qualified to run for office.
If only one candidate qualifies for a district, that candidate is considered elected as of the date of the general election. If only two candidates qualify for a district, then only a general election will be held for that seat.
All precincts will vote at
- Mulberry Civic Center, 901 NE 5th Street, Mulberry, FL 33860
Voters will elect City Commissioners for the following seat(s) in 2026:
- District #1 (at large), District #3 and District #5