Court bars Julia Botel's re-election bid, saying she failed to follow qualifying rules

Riviera Beach City Council member Julia Botel did not follow state law in attempting to qualify as a candidate for re-election and is barred from running, according to a ruling Tuesday from the Fourth District Court of Appeal.

The court gave Botel until Thursday to appeal its decision. If the decision stands, her opponent, former Long Beach, New York, city manager Glen Spiritis, would be the only candidate for the District 4 seat Botel was trying to win for a third time.

Botel, a 76-year old former educator, said she was "surprised to hear of the court's decision."

"But I am a great believer in our justice system, so I am exploring my legal options at this point," she said in a statement. "And, if I have any, this may not be the end of this case."

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Spiritis, 71, said "the court ruled based on the law. I'm looking forward to representing the people of Riviera Beach."

Trying for the second election in a row to unseat Botel, Spiritis and the City of Riviera Beach challenged whether she had filed her campaign paperwork by the noon, Nov. 21, deadline and whether she had paid her filing fee with a campaign check, as is required by state law.

Botel announced last year that she would not be seeking re-election and would be supporting the candidacy of her former aide. But when the aide decided against a run, Botel changed course, jumping back into the race.

Julia Botel says another council member is to blame for paperwork delay

She acknowledged that she filed her paperwork after the noon deadline but blamed another City Council member, Tradrick McCoy, whom she said shouted racial epithets at her and verbally abused city clerk staff in a bid to block her from filing on time.

McCoy, who has frequently tussled with Botel and his other colleagues on the City Council dais, called those allegations "defamatory."

The timing of Botel's paperwork wasn't the only potential problem with her qualifying. Spiritis and the city said she paid the filing fee with a cashier's check, not one drawn from a campaign account, as state law requires.

The city initially determined that Botel was properly qualified but later followed up to tell her that she was, in fact, not qualified.

She filed suit against the city, and Palm Beach County Circuit Court Judge Scott Kerner ruled in her favor, saying the city was "ultra-sensitive" and "draconian" in its reading of state law requiring candidates to file their paperwork by noon on the last day of a two-week qualifying period and to submit a filing fee from a campaign account.

Spiritis appealed that ruling, arguing that Botel had not followed state law in her effort to qualify. The appellate court agreed, ruling that, because it determined that Botel paid the filing fee with a cashier's check and not with one from a campaign account, the court did not need to weigh in the timing of when she filed her paperwork.

"Because Dr. Botel submitted her qualifying papers with a cashier’s check, she did not qualify to run for City Council," the appellate ruling states. "We recognize this result is harsh. But (state law) is clear, and it is not for us to rewrite a statute to save a party in such a situation. We must enforce the law as written."

Julia Botel was already facing headwinds in her bid for re-election

Two years ago, Botel, the only white council member in majority-Black Riviera Beach, angered many Black residents, who said she spread racist misinformation about a Singer Island beach party that was expected to draw a large Black crowd July 3, 2022.

Botel apologized, saying she should have verified information she was given by a police officer. She refused to name that officer, saying she did not want to get the officer in trouble.

Botel's apology did not mollify many residents, who gathered thousands of signatures in a bid to recall her. The Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office ultimately disqualified those recall petitions, saying they did not include the name of the city and county, as is required by state law.

Meanwhile, Spiritis' second bid for election got more traction than his first one. He picked up the endorsement of the Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association and, with boost from $25,000 he lent his campaign, raised $56,320 through Jan. 31, about $14,000 more than Botel had brought in by that date.

In her statement, she took a shot at how Spiritis could end up succeeding her on the City Council.

"Personally, I have to tell you that if the only way I could win was to run unopposed, I would not consider it much of a victory," she said. "If today's decision stands, then the citizens of Riviera Beach will have been deprived of their right to vote for who should represent them. They will have no choice but to accept the only candidate remaining. I don't think they would like that. It would be a loss for us all."

Botel then pledged to "do everything in my power to protect Riviera Beach residents' right to vote for their choice."

Wayne Washington is a journalist covering West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach and race relations at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com. Help support our work; subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Court: Julia Botel did not follow state law in qualifying for re-election