Florida law requires that an officeholder running for another position must submit an irrevocable letter of resignation ahead of qualifying if the terms of the two offices overlap. The “resignation must be submitted at least 10 days before the first day of qualifying for the office he or she intends to seek,” and the resignation must take place before the new term begins. DeSantis’ current term, which he overwhelmingly won in November, ends in 2027 — two years after a president would be sworn in. “Resign to run laws can both be a deterrent to having some of the more successful people run, and can prevent voters from having the candidates that they would actually prefer,” said Michael Morley, an election law professor at Florida State University. Both top Republicans in the state House and Senate have previously expressed support for altering the law to avoid a resignation. And there’s precedent for changing it in the Sunshine State — it was done when then-Gov. Charlie Crist was on the shortlist to be John McCain’s running mate in 2008. Restrictions on those running for federal office were added back in 2018 under then-Gov. Rick Scott. Republican state Sen. Danny Burgess, the chair of the Ethics and Elections Committee in the Florida Senate, told POLITICO’s Gary Fineout that the “ability to clarify” the state’s resign-to-run law “may be something we address this year.” No such bills have been filed yet. Even in the law’s current form, there is “arguably a little bit of ambiguity” on when it would apply, Morley said. One interpretation of “qualifying” could mean appearing on the ballot, while another interpretation could mean once the candidate is elected to the office — meaning one would have to resign only if they win. Similar rules also create the possibility of turnover as candidates vie for seats in other states. Arizona state law, for instance, also requires elected officials to resign from their position in order to run for another local, state or federal office, unless it’s in the final year of their term. A number of local officials are mulling a run for Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego’s seat as he runs for Senate, including Vice Mayor Yassamin Ansari, Councilmembers Laura Pastor and Betty Guardado, and state Sen. Raquel Terán. And in one of the country’s largest cities, the Philadelphia City Council has also seen turnover as six of its members — around one-third of the council — resigned to launch bids to replace term-limited Democratic Mayor Jim Kenney later this year. The resign-to-run provision states that city officers or employees can’t “be a candidate for nomination or election to any public office unless he shall have first resigned.” There’s no state-level resign-to-run law in the Commonwealth. “On the positive side, it has brought a bunch of fresh air into Council because most of these people who’ve resigned to run for mayor, … none of them would have lost this fall had they run for reelection,” said Neil Oxman, a Pennsylvania-based Democratic consultant. It’s Monday. Send tips and feedback: mfernandez@politico.com and @madfernandez616. Days until the Wisconsin Supreme Court election and Chicago mayoral runoff: 22 Days until the Kentucky primary: 64 Days until the Mississippi primary: 148 Days until the Louisiana primary: 215 Days until the 2023 election: 239 Days until the 2024 election: 603
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