Any candidate for election to the office of county sheriff shall file with the county auditor by the last Tuesday of March of the election year a certification of qualification issued by the law enforcement officers standards commission that the candidate meets the qualifications provided in § 23-3-43. However, any candidate appointed to fill a vacancy by a party central committee pursuant to § 12-6-56 shall file with the county auditor a certification of qualification by the second Tuesday in August. Any candidate who files an independent nominating petition shall file with the county auditor a certification of qualification by the first Tuesday after the first Monday of June. A sheriff appointed to fill a vacancy by the county commission shall file with the county auditor a certification of qualification within thirty days of the appointment. Failure to file a certification shall prevent the candidate’s name from being placed on the ballot.

Source: SL 1992, ch 169, § 2; SL 2002, ch 74, § 6; SL 2005, ch 87, § 6; SL 2009, ch 69, § 1; SL 2015, ch 77, § 11 rejected Nov. 8, 2016.