‘MAGA’ State House Candidate Files Lawsuit After Being Bumped From Florida Primary Ballot

‘The establishment buys who they can, cancels who they can’t, and then comes at whoever is left standing.’

Tim Sharp—an America First “MAGA” candidate in Flagler County, Florida—has filed a lawsuit against Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd and the Florida Division of Elections after allegedly being unjustly bumped from the ballot.

Sharp, who was running for the Florida House of Representatives, was disqualified from the Aug. 23 Florida primary despite completing all candidate requirements. The state elections department told Sharp he was disqualified because his qualifying check wasn’t labeled as his official campaign account, but Sharp disputes this claim.

In a Sept. 18 press release (pdf), Sharp’s campaign said he “was cancelled from running for state house representative despite completing meticulous paperwork and being fully qualified,” and announced that he’s being represented by the nationally recognized Dhillon Law Group.

Searchable online campaign records show that Sharp designated Middlesex Federal Savings in Sommerville, Massachusetts, as the primary depository for his campaign on Oct. 12, 2021.

Screenshot from Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository for Candidate form in which Tim Sharp designated Middlesex Federal Savings in Sommerville, Mass., as his official campaign account holder. (Florida Department of State/Division of Elections website)

On June 17, 2022, Sharp hand-delivered a check for his campaign qualifying fee to the state elections department. According to the image of the check, it was written from his primary campaign account at Middlesex Federal Savings.

A screenshot of the check received June 17, 2022, by the Florida Division of Elections, written from Tim Sharp’s designated campaign account at Middlesex Federal Savings in Sommerville, Mass. (Florida Department of State/Division of Elections website)

The Florida Division of Elections 2022 Supervisor’s Handbook on Candidate Qualifying (pdf) says that if a qualifying check is hand delivered and does not have

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