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An appeals court Friday ruled that Gov. Ron DeSantis should be able to appoint a successor for a Manatee County School Board member who is running for a state House seat. A three-judge panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeal rejected arguments by James Golden that an election should be held in November for the school board seat that will be vacated by Rich Tatem. Under the state’s resign-to-run law, Tatem on May 30 submitted his resignation from the school board, effective Nov. 5, which is election day. Tatem’s term on the school board otherwise would have ended in 2026. After Tatem submitted the resignation, Golden tried to submit paperwork to run for the school board seat in November but was denied by Manatee County Supervisor of Elections James Satcher. Golden filed a lawsuit, but a circuit judge dismissed the case. The appeals court said a key issue in the dispute was a law that would require an election if the remainder of the school board term after Tatem’s resignation would be more than 28 months. Golden argued the 28 months should be calculated from the time Tatem submitted his resignation, which would require an election this year. But the appeals court ruled that the 28 months should be calculated from the effective date of Tatem’s resignation, which would not require an election this year and would allow DeSantis to appoint a successor who would serve until 2026. “The ‘resign-to-run’ law … unequivocally provides that ‘(the) office is deemed vacant upon the effective date of the resignation submitted by the official in his or her letter of resignation,’” said Friday’s decision, shared by Judges Patricia Kelly, Susan Rothstein-Youakim and Andrea Teves Smith, adding that “we hold that the remainder of the term of office should be calculated from the effective date of the resignation.” Tatem is running in Manatee County’s House District 72, which became open when former Rep. Tommy Gregory, R-Lakewood Ranch, was named president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota.
