Marina v. Leahy
| Citation | 16 Fla. L. Weekly 1026,578 So.2d 382 |
| Decision Date | 12 April 1991 |
| Docket Number | No. 91-877,91-877 |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
| Parties | Evaristo "Ever" MARINA, Appellant, v. David C. LEAHY, Dade County Supervisor of Elections, Appellee. 578 So.2d 382, 16 Fla. L. Week. 1026 |
Entin, Schwartz, Goldman, Margules & Moore and Diane Marger Moore, for appellant.
Robert Ginsburg, County Atty. and William X. Candela, for appellee.
Before BARKDULL, NESBITT and LEVY, JJ.
Defendant Evaristo "Ever" Marina appeals the trial court's ruling deleting his name from the ballot of the mayoral election for the City of Sweetwater, Florida. We affirm the trial court's decision.
Marina had registered as a candidate to run in the mayoral elections for the office of mayor of the City of Sweetwater set for May 14, 1991. On April 1, 1991, the Dade County Supervisor of Elections, David C. Leahy, received a sworn written statement from an elector residing in the city, challenging Marina's qualifications and specifically alleging that Marina was not a resident of the City of Sweetwater for six months prior to qualifying for the election, as required by the Sweetwater Code, Section 6.04. Section 6.04 of the Sweetwater Code requires that candidates for city office have been residents of the city at least six months prior to the date of qualification for office and states specifically that:
(a) Registration books shall open for qualification of candidates fifty-five (55) days prior to election day and shall close at 5:00 p.m. on the forty-fifth (45th) day prior to election day. Any person who shall possess the qualification requisites to be an elector at the general state election and shall have resided in the city for six (6) months preceding the election, shall be eligible to qualify as a candidate for an office in the City of Sweetwater. In computing the fifty-five (55) days and forty-five (45) days prior to election day, the election day is excluded, but all other holidays and Sundays are to be included. Candidate qualifying shall be conducted on weekdays, only during business hours, and should the forty-fifth (45th) day preceding an election fall on Saturday, Sunday or holiday, then the registration books shall close at 5:00 p.m. on the business day preceding.
Upon receiving the sworn written statement, Leahy, as supervisor of elections, filed a Complaint for Declaratory Judgment under the authority of Dade County Ordinance 91-29 requesting a judicial determination regarding Marina's eligibility for candidacy. 1 The Complaint alleged that Marina had previously qualified to run for the Dade County School Board and had listed a Dade County address, not within the City of Sweetwater, when he filed a campaign treasurer's report covering the period from November 2, 1990 to November 30, 1990. Thus the Complaint further alleged that Marina was not a resident of the City of Sweetwater on the critical date of September 20, 1990, six months prior to the date upon which he qualified as a candidate.
The trial court held an emergency evidentiary hearing, and determined that Marina was not a resident of the City of Sweetwater six months prior to qualifying as a candidate for mayor of the City of Sweetwater as mandated by Sec. 6.04 of the City of Sweetwater Charter. Accordingly, the trial court held that Marina was not a qualified candidate for mayor in the upcoming election, under the city code, and ordered that Marina's name be deleted from the ballot. Marina filed an Emergency Motion for Stay Pending Expedited Appeal, and this Court granted an emergency motion to expedite.
Marina argues first that the trial court erred in finding that he was not a resident of Sweetwater on the critical date. It is fundamental that the factual conclusions of the trial court are presumed correct and the burden is upon the appellant to demonstrate reversible error. Applegate v. Barnett Bank of Tallahassee, 377 So.2d 1150 (Fla.1979); Kates v. Millheiser, 569 So.2d 1357 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990); Grossman v. See Air Towers, 513 So.2d 686 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987) review denied 520 So.2d 584 (Fla.1988); Department of Transportation v. Morehouse, 350 So.2d 529 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977), cert. denied, 358 So.2d 129 (Fla.1978). The trial court specifically found that; "Mr. Evaristo 'Ever' Marina was not a resident of the City of Sweetwater six (6) months prior to qualifying as a candidate for Mayor of the City of Sweetwater as mandated by Sec. 6.04 of the City of Sweetwater Charter." The statement of facts in Marina's brief candidly admits that there was conflicting evidence and testimony as to Marina's residency during the critical period. Thus, there is substantial support for the trial court's factual determination that Marina was not a qualified candidate.
Secondly, Marina challenges Section 6.04 of the Sweetwater Code. The right to seek public office is not absolute, and...
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