A home-rule city charter may set ballot-application requirements for city office candidates, but not requirements tied to timely filing. If a charter requires a filing fee, the fee amount and any alternative payment procedure must be set by the charter or authorized ordinance. Petition signatures must meet the greater of 25 or 0.5% of the mayoral vote total in the relevant territory.
Sec. 143.005. APPLICATION FOR HOME-RULE CITY OFFICE. (a) A city charter may prescribe requirements in connection with a candidate's application for a place on the ballot for an office of a home-rule city. This section does not authorize a city charter requirement in connection with the timely filing of an application, and any charter requirement related to an application's timely filing is superseded by Section 143.007 and other applicable filing provisions prescribed by this code. (b) If a city charter prescribes the requirements that a candidate's application must satisfy for the candidate's name to be placed on the ballot, Section 141.031(a)(4)(L) also applies to the application. The other provisions of Section 141.031 do not apply. (c) If a city charter requires candidates to pay a filing fee, the amount of the fee and an alternative procedure to payment of the fee shall be prescribed by the charter or by ordinance under charter authorization. However, if an ordinance prescribing an alternative procedure to payment of a filing fee is adopted before the effective date of this code without charter authorization, the ordinance, as it exists on the effective date of this code, continues in effect until the adoption of a charter provision prescribing an alternative procedure or authorizing prescription of an alternative procedure by ordinance. (d) For any petition required or authorized to be filed in connection with a candidate's application for a place on the ballot for an office of a home-rule city, the minimum number of signatures that must appear on the petition is the greater of: (1) 25; or (2) one-half of one percent of the total vote received in the territory from which the office is elected by all candidates for mayor in the most recent mayoral general election. (e) If the city charter of a home-rule city with a population of more than 1.18 million located primarily in a county with a population of 2.5 million or more that holds nonpartisan elections for its offices requires both a petition and a $50 fee to be filed for a candidate's name to be placed on the ballot, those requirements supersede this section. Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 211, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1986. Amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 54, Sec. 11(a), eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 427, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 597, Sec. 66, eff. Sept. 1, 1991; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 669, Sec. 15, eff. Sept. 1, 2001; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 695, Sec. 1, eff. June 20, 2003. Amended by: Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 614 (H.B. 417), Sec. 30, eff. September 1, 2007. Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1163 (H.B. 2702), Sec. 14, eff. September 1, 2011. Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 644 (H.B. 4559), Sec. 29, eff. September 1, 2023.