a. Candidates
The Sunshine Law does not apply to candidates for office, unless the candidate is an incumbent seeking reelection. AGO 92-05.b. Members-Elect
The requirements of the Sunshine Law apply not only to meetings of covered boards or commissions but also to “meetings with or attended by any person elected to such board or commission, but who has not yet taken office.” Section 286.011(1), F.S. Thus, members-elect are subject to the Sunshine Law in the same manner as board members who are currently in office. See also Hough v. Stembridge, 278 So. 2d 288, 289 (Fla. 3d DCA 1973) (individual, upon election to public office, loses his or her status as a private individual and acquires a position more akin to that of a public trustee and therefore is subject to s. 286.011, F.S.). Cf. Inf. Op. to Lamar, August 2, 1993 (Sunshine Law applies to transition team made up of citizens appointed by the mayor to make recommendations on city government reorganization). And see Linares v. District School Board of Pasco County, No. 17-00230 (Fla. 6th Cir. Ct. January 10, 2018), available in the Cases database at the open government site at MyFloridaLegal.com (Sunshine Law applied to advisory committee members “from the moment each member was selected to be on the [committee]”).A candidate who is unopposed is not considered to be a member-elect subject to the Sunshine Law until the election has been held. AGO 98-60. Accord Inf. Op. to Popowitz, August 12, 2016. The Popowitz opinion references a 2010 opinion from the Division of Elections (Div. of Elections Op. 10-09, July 26, 2010), finding that the date of a candidate’s election to office could be deemed to be either the date specified by a court in an election case, election day itself, the date the final canvassing board certifies the election results, or some other date, depending upon the particular factual situation involved.
