Nominations of Candidates by Parties

Del. Code tit. 15, ch. 33
in effect

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3301 Certificates of nomination.

(a) Candidates for political parties who must file for election in accordance with § 3101 of this title, and who either receive the majority vote at the subsequent primary election or are unopposed in the party for the office for which the candidate has filed shall be considered nominated. (b) The presiding officer and secretary of the state convention or committee of each political party eligible to place candidates on the ballot shall submit certificates of nomination for electors of President and Vice-President of the United States together with the name of the candidates for President and Vice-President to the State Election Commissioner. (c) The presiding officer and secretary of the state convention or committee of each political party eligible to place candidates on the ballot may submit a candidate for federal and statewide offices by submitting a certificate of nomination to the State Election Commissioner: (1) For any office for which no candidate has filed in accordance with § 3101 of this title, or (2) For any office for which candidates are selected by the state nominating convention of a minor political party. (d) The presiding officer and secretary of the county committee of each political party eligible to place candidates on the ballot shall submit a certificate of nomination for candidates for the General Assembly and county and municipal offices to the Department office for the county in which the candidate resides, as follows: (1) For any office for which no candidate has filed in accordance with § 3101 of this title. (2) For any office for which candidates are selected by the state nominating convention of a minor political party. (e) For minor political parties not required to select candidates under Chapter 31 of this title, each party shall select its candidates at the party’s state or county nominating convention held on or before August 1 in the year of a general election and shall file the certificates of nomination of the selected candidates within 10 business days of the nominating convention. To be removed from a general election ballot, the candidate must withdraw the certificate of nomination on or before 4:30 p.m. on the first Friday after the day the certificate of nomination is submitted. (f) Nominating certificates shall be in writing and, in each case, shall contain the name of each person nominated, the person’s residence and the office for which the person is nominated, other than the names of the candidates for President and Vice-President for which no residence need be given. The persons making such certificates shall add to their signatures their respective places of residence and shall acknowledge such certificate before an officer duly authorized to take acknowledgments of deeds, and a certificate of such acknowledgment shall be fixed to the instrument. (g) No such state nominating convention shall have completed its business relative to such nominations until such time as 1 nominee for each of the aforesaid offices shall have received a vote greater than 50% of the total number of eligible delegate votes at such convention, which polled vote shall be considered final. (h) The State Election Commissioner shall verify that the nominations of candidates submitted to the State Election Commissioner and the eligibility of each political party to make such nominations conform to the requirements under this title. The Department offices shall do the same concerning certificates of nomination submitted to the offices. (i) The State Election Commissioner shall forthwith send a copy of each certificate of nomination submitted to the Commissioner to the Department offices. The Department offices shall forthwith send a copy of each certificate of nomination submitted to the offices to the State Election Commissioner. (j) Notwithstanding anything else set forth herein to the contrary, a candidate for office nominated by a party under this section upon the filing of a certificate of nomination must be a registered member of the party nominating such candidate at the time the certificate of nomination is filed, as shown on the voter rolls of the Department (except in the case of presidential and vice-presidential nominees, who need not be registered voters in the State). (k) All candidates for statewide office, the General Assembly, or any elected county office, who have not already obtained a criminal history background check under § 3106 of this title in the same general election year, must request a criminal history background check, no earlier than 90 days before the candidate filing deadline and no later than the filing deadline, from the State Bureau of Identification and provide proof that the criminal history background check has been requested before being nominated as a candidate. (1) A candidate will be considered a provisional candidate for election until the Commissioner has made the determination that the candidate is qualified under paragraph (k)(5) of this section. (2) The State Bureau of Identification must provide the Commissioner within 10 days of the State Bureau of Identification’s receipt of the candidate’s request a report of the candidate’s criminal history record or a statement that the State Bureau of Identification Central Repository contains no information relating to the candidate. (3) The information received by the Commissioner from the State Bureau of Identification under this section is not a public record as defined under Chapter 100 of Title 29. (4) The criminal history background check must be paid for by the candidate but may be reimbursed to the candidate as an authorized campaign expenditure under this title. (5) The Commissioner must determine by October 1 of each general election year that a candidate is qualified under § 21 of Article II of the Delaware Constitution before accepting the certificate of nomination for a candidate under this section.

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3302 Party title, figure or device.

(a) The certificates of nomination shall designate a title for the party which the convention or committee represents, together with any simple figure or device by which its lists of candidates may be designated on the ballot. The figure or title or device selected and designated by the state conventions or committee of any party shall be used by that party throughout this State. Only 1 figure or device shall be used by a party at any election. The same title, figure or device shall not be used by more than 1 party, and the party first certifying a name, title, figure or device to the Department shall have prior right to use the same, and provided further that the Democratic Party and the Republican Party shall have exclusive use of such title and no other party shall use the word “Democratic” or “Republican” or any variation thereof in its title. Such figure or device may be the figure of a star, an eagle, a plow, or some such appropriate symbol, but the coat of arms or seal of this State or of the United States or the flag of the United States or of this State shall not be used as such figure or device. (b) In case of a division in any party and claim by 2 or more factions to the same party name or title, figure or device, if the division occurs at a state convention or extends throughout this State, the State Board of Elections shall, within 10 days after any one of them has received the certificates of the contending factions, assemble in Dover, and determine to which faction the name, title or figure properly belongs, giving the preference to the convention held at the time and place designated in the call of the regularly constituted party authorities; if, within 5 days after, the other faction presents no other party name or title, figure or device and certifies the same to the Board, the latter shall again immediately assemble and select some suitable title, figure or device for such faction and the name shall be placed above the list of its candidates on the ballots. If the certificate of the contending factions are not received by the Board in time for them to assemble at Dover before publishing the device and list of candidates in the newspapers, then and in that case the Board shall determine for itself which faction shall be entitled to the name, title, figure or device and shall select a name, title, figure or device for the other faction.

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3303 Time of filing certificates.

(a) (1) Except as provided under paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(4) of this section and §§ 3002(b) and 3301(e) of this title, a certification of nomination must be filed before the close of the official business day on or before September 1 of the year of any general election, as follows: a. For statewide office, with the State Election Commissioner. b. For nonstatewide office, with the Department office for the county in which the nominee resides. (2) If September 1 is a Sunday or legal holiday, a certificate of nomination under paragraph (a)(1) of this section must be filed on the next official business day. (3) A certificate of nomination must be on the form specified by the State Election Commissioner. (4) A nominee nominated for office by a national nominating convention must be named on a certificate of nomination to be filed before 12:00 noon on the earlier of the following: a. The Tuesday following the national nominating convention. b. September 15 of the election year. (b) Except as provided under §§ 3002(b) and 3301(e) of this title, to be removed from a general election ballot, a nominee must withdraw the certificate of nomination on or before 4:30 p.m. of the first Friday after the deadline for filing the certificate under subsection (a) of this section.

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3304 Duties of State Election Commissioner.

(a) The State Election Commissioner, upon receiving the certificates of the several party conventions or committees, or any supplemental certificate, of the respective nominations of the candidates for electors of President and Vice-President of the United States and the names of the candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States as provided in this chapter, not less than 50 days before the day fixed by law for the ensuing general election, under the Commissioner’s hand and seal of office, shall certify to the Department the names of the candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States of the political parties, together with the designated title of each party and the figure or device of each party as certified to the Commissioner. (b) The State Election Commissioner, before the day of the ensuing general election, under the Commissioner’s hand and seal of office, shall certify to the Prothonotary of the Superior Court in each county the nominations of the candidates for electors of President and Vice-President of the United States and the names of the candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States of each political party as shall have been duly certified to the Commissioner, which certificates shall be presented by the Prothonotary to the Superior Court of the county upon its convening for the performance of the duties imposed upon it by article V of the Constitution of this State.

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3305 Preservation of certificates for 6 months.

The State Election Commissioner and the Department shall cause to be preserved in their respective offices all certificates of nomination filed under this chapter for 6 months after the date of filing thereof.

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3306 Supplemental certificates of nomination.

(a) Whenever it shall be determined, subsequent to the dates specified in §§ 3301 and 3303 of this title, that a duly nominated candidate will be unable to serve if elected because of death, physical, mental or other incapacity, the state, county or city (if a municipality holds its election at the time of the general election) committee shall convene within 24 hours of said determination to authorize the filing of a supplemental certificate of nomination for a substitute candidate, or to decline to issue such a certificate. However, in the case of the death of a candidate, said committee may convene within a reasonable period of time sufficient to have the new candidate’s name placed on the ballot, but in no case later than 5 days from the date of death. (b) Such certificate, if issued, shall be delivered to the officer or officers to whom the original certificate was submitted no later than 12:00 noon of the day following that meeting at which the certificate was authorized. However, if said meeting shall occur within 5 days of the day of election, the certificate shall be delivered immediately.

Del. Code tit. 15, § 3308 Penalties.

Whoever: (1) Falsely makes or fraudulently defaces or fraudulently destroys any certificate of nomination or any part thereof; or (2) Files any certificate of nomination, knowing the same or any part thereof to be falsely made; or (3) Suppresses any certificate of nomination which has been duly filed or any part thereof; or (4) Conspires with other persons, induces or attempts to induce any other person to do any of such acts, whether or not any of such acts are committed or attempted to be committed; shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500 or imprisoned not more than 5 years.
Source: DE Code (Official Site)URL: https://delcode.delaware.gov/title15/c033/index.htmlFetched: 10/4/2026