Signature requirements and deadlines for 2022 state government elections

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Candidates for elective office must often file petition signatures or pay filing fees in order to have their names printed on the ballot. Candidates must submit these petitions, and any other required paperwork or filing fees (sums of money paid, either to the state or to a political party), by fixed deadlines. These requirements and deadlines, which are referred to collectively as ballot access rules, vary between offices and from state to state. This article outlines filing deadlines and petition requirements for state-level candidates in the 2022 election cycle.

Filing deadlines and primary dates for statewide elections

The following table lists filing deadlines and primary dates for statewide elections in 2022. Please note that dates are subject to change.

Primary dates and filing deadlines, 2022
State	Primary date	Primary runoff date	Filing deadline for primary candidates	Source
Alabama	5/24/2022	6/21/2022	1/28/2022 2/11/2022 (congressional)	Source
Alaska	8/16/2022	N/A	6/1/2022	Source
Arizona	8/2/2022	N/A	4/4/2022	Source
Arkansas	5/24/2022	6/21/2022	3/1/2022	Source
California	6/7/2022	N/A	3/11/2022	Source
Colorado	6/28/2022	N/A	3/15/2022	Source
Connecticut	8/9/2022	N/A	6/7/2022	Source
Delaware	9/13/2022	N/A	7/12/2022	Source
Florida	8/23/2022	N/A	6/17/2022	Source
Georgia	5/24/2022	6/21/2022	3/11/2022	Source
Hawaii	8/13/2022	N/A	6/7/2022	Source
Idaho	5/17/2022	N/A	3/11/2022	Source
Illinois	6/28/2022	N/A	3/14/2022	Source
Indiana	5/3/2022	N/A	2/4/2022	Source
Iowa	6/7/2022	N/A	3/18/2022	Source
Kansas	8/2/2022	N/A	6/1/2022	Source
Kentucky	5/17/2022	N/A	1/25/2022	Source
Louisiana	11/8/2022	N/A	7/22/2022	Source
Maine	6/14/2022	N/A	3/15/2022	Source
Maryland	7/19/2022	N/A	4/15/2022	Source
Massachusetts	9/6/2022	N/A	5/31/2022 6/7/2022 (Congress and statewide office)	Source
Michigan	8/2/2022	N/A	4/19/2022	Source
Minnesota	8/9/2022	N/A	5/31/2022	Source
Mississippi	6/7/2022	6/28/2022	3/1/2022	Source
Missouri	8/2/2022	N/A	3/29/2022	Source
Montana	6/7/2022	N/A	3/14/2022	Source
Nebraska	5/10/2022	N/A	2/15/2022	Source
Nevada	6/14/2022	N/A	3/18/2022	Source
New Hampshire	9/13/2022	N/A	6/10/2022	Source
New Jersey	6/7/2022	N/A	4/4/2022	Source
New Mexico	6/7/2022	N/A	3/24/2022	Source
New York	6/28/2022; 8/23/2022 (congressional and state senate only)	N/A	4/7/2022; 6/10/2022 (congressional and state senate only)	Source
North Carolina	5/17/2022	7/5/2022 (if no federal office is involved); 7/26/2022 (if a federal office is involved)	3/4/2022	Source
North Dakota	6/14/2022	N/A	4/11/2022	Source
Ohio	5/3/2022 (Congress and statewide offices) 8/2/2022 (state legislative offices)	N/A	2/2/2022 (U.S. House candidates: 3/4/2022)	Source
Oklahoma	6/28/2022	8/23/2022	4/15/2022	Source
Oregon	5/17/2022	N/A	3/8/2022	Source
Pennsylvania	5/17/2022	N/A	3/15/2022 (Congress and statewide offices only) 3/28/2022 (state legislative candidates)	Source Source
Rhode Island	9/13/2022	N/A	7/15/2022	Source
South Carolina	6/14/2022	6/28/2022	3/30/2022	Source
South Dakota	6/7/2022	N/A	3/29/2022	Source
Tennessee	8/4/2022	N/A	4/7/2022	Source
Texas	3/1/2022	5/24/2022	12/13/2021	Source
Utah	6/28/2022	N/A	3/4/2022	Source
Vermont	8/9/2022	N/A	5/26/2022	Source
Virginia	6/21/2022	N/A	4/7/2022	Source
Washington	8/2/2022	N/A	5/20/2022	Source
West Virginia	5/10/2022	N/A	1/29/2022	Source
Wisconsin	8/9/2022	N/A	6/1/2022	Source
Wyoming	8/16/2022	N/A	5/27/2022

The table below lists changes made to election dates and deadlines in the 2022 election cycle. Items are listed in reverse chronological order by date of change, with the most recent change appearing first.

Record of date and deadline changes, 2022
State	Date of change	Description of change	Source
Louisiana	6/6/2022	A federal district court, in striking down the state's congressional redistricting plan, postponed the deadline for candidates qualifying by petition in lieu of paying the filing fee from June 22, 2022, to July 8, 2022. The court's order did not affect the July 22, 2022, deadline for candidates qualifying by paying the filing fee.	Source
Ohio	5/28/2022	Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) called for the state legislative primary to be held on August 2, 2022 (the primary was originally scheduled for May 3, 2022).	Source
New York	5/10/2022	A federal district court judge affirmed the decision of a state-level judge to postpone the primaries for congressional and state senate offices to August 23, 2022 (the primary was originally scheduled for June 28, 2022). The state court then issued an order establishing new candidate filing deadlines.	Source; Source
Pennsylvania	3/16/2022	The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania fixed March 28, 2022, as the filing deadline for General Assembly candidates.	Source
Maryland	3/15/2022	The Maryland Court of Appeals postponed the primary election from June 28, 2022, to July 19, 2022. The court also extended the filing deadline from March 22, 2022, to April 15, 2022.	Source
Massachusetts	2/14/2022	Governor Charlie Baker (R) signed a bill into law that rescheduled the state's primary election from September 20, 2022, to September 6, 2022.	Source
Ohio	5/28/2022	Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R), in response to a federal court order, directed that the primary for state legislative offices be held on August 2, 2022.	Source
Utah	2/14/2022	Governor Spencer Cox (R) signed SB170 into law, moving the candidate filing deadline to March 4, 2022. The original filing deadline was set for March 11, 2022.	Source
Maryland	2/11/2022	The Maryland Court of Appeals extended the candidate filing deadline from February 22, 2022, to March 22, 2022.	Source
Pennsylvania	2/9/2022	The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania suspended the candidate filing period for the primary election, pending resolution of a redistricting dispute. The original filing deadline was set for March 8, 2022. The court later fixed March 15, 2022, as the filing deadline for statewide offices and the U.S. Congress.	Source
Alabama	1/24/2022	The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama postponed the filing deadline for primary congressional candidates from January 28, 2022, to February 11, 2022.	Source
Kentucky	1/6/2022	Governor Andy Beshear (D) signed HB172 into law, extending the filing deadline for partisan candidates from January 7, 2022, to January 25, 2022.	Source
North Carolina	12/8/2021	The Supreme Court of North Carolina ordered the postponement of the statewide primary, originally scheduled for March 8, 2022, to May 17, 2022. The court also suspended candidate filing, which subsequently resumed on February 24, 2022, and concluded on March 4, 2022.	Source
North Carolina	2/9/2022	The North Carolina State Board of Elections announced that candidate filing, having been suspended by the state supreme court in December 2021, would resume on February 24, 2022, and conclude on March 4, 2022.	Source

Signature requirements, filing fees, and filing deadlines for gubernatorial candidates, 2022

Signature requirements, filing fees, and filing deadlines for gubernatorial candidates, 2022
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source.	Notes
Alaska	Governor	N/A	N/A	$200.00	6/1/2022	Source	$100 each for the gubernatorial and lieutenant-gubernatorial candidates.
Arizona	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	0.25% of qualified signers in the state	N/A	4/4/2022	Source
Arizona	Governor	Unaffiliated	3% of total registered voters in the state who are not members of a ballot-qualified political party	N/A	4/4/2022	Source
Arkansas	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	N/A	Fixed by party	3/1/2022	Source
Arkansas	Governor	Unaffiliated	3% of total votes cast for governor in 2018 or 10,000, whichever is less	N/A	5/1/2022	Source
California	Governor	N/A	65-100	$4,371.12	3/11/2022	Source
Colorado	Governor	Major party	1,500 per congressional district	N/A	3/15/2022	Source
Colorado	Governor	Minor party	1,000 per congressional district	N/A	4/4/2022	Source
Colorado	Governor	Unaffiliated	1,000 per congressional district	N/A	7/14/2022	Source
Florida	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	144,419	$8,050.86	6/17/2022	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Florida	Governor	Unaffiliated	144,419	$5,367.24	6/17/2022	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Georgia	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	N/A	$5,250.00	3/11/2022	Source
Georgia	Governor	Unaffiliated	64,286	$5,250.00	7/12/2022	Source
Hawaii	Governor	N/A	25	$750.00	6/7/2022	Source
Illinois	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	3,250	N/A	3/14/2022	Source
Illinois	Governor	Unaffiliated	25,000	N/A	7/11/2022	Source
Iowa	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	3,500	N/A	3/18/2022	Source
Iowa	Governor	Unaffiliated	3,500	N/A	8/19/2022	Source
Kansas	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	1% of total registered voters in the state who are registered with the candidate's party	$2,092.00	6/1/2022	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Kansas	Governor	Unaffiliated	5,000	$2,092.00	8/1/2022	Source
Maine	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	2,000	N/A	3/15/2022	Source
Maine	Governor	Unaffiliated	4,000	N/A	6/1/2022	Source
Maryland	Governor	Democratic or Republican	N/A	$290.00	2/22/2022	Source
Maryland	Governor	Unaffiliated	10,000	$290.00	8/3/2022	Source
Massachusetts	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	10,000	N/A	6/7/2022	Source
Massachusetts	Governor	Unaffiliated	10,000	N/A	8/30/2022	Source
Michigan	Governor	Democratic or Republican	15,000	N/A	4/19/2022	Source
Michigan	Governor	Unaffiliated	12,000	N/A	2022-07-21	Source
Minnesota	Governor	Democratic or Republican	2,000	$300.00	5/31/2022	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Minnesota	Governor	Unaffiliated	2,000	N/A	5/31/2022	Source
Nebraska	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	N/A	$1,050.00	2/15/2022	Source
Nebraska	Governor	Unaffiliated	4,000	$1,050.00	9/1/2022	Source
Nevada	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	N/A	$300.00	3/18/2022	Source
Nevada	Governor	Unaffiliated	N/A	$300.00	3/18/2022	Source
New Mexico	Governor	Democratic	3,518	N/A	3/24/2022	Source
New Mexico	Governor	Libertarian	230	N/A	3/24/2022	Source
New Mexico	Governor	Republican	1,503	N/A	3/24/2022	Source
New Mexico	Governor	Unaffiliated	3% of all votes cast for governor in the last election	N/A	6/30/2022	Source
Ohio	Governor	Major party	1,000	$150.00	2/2/2022	Source
Ohio	Governor	Minor party	500	$150.00	2/2/2022	Source
Ohio	Governor	Unaffiliated	5,000	$150.00	5/2/2022	Source
Oklahoma	Governor	All candidates	2% of registered voters in the state	$2,000.00	4/15/2022	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Oregon	Governor	Major party	1,000	$100.00	3/10/2022	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Oregon	Governor	Unaffiliated	23,744	N/A	8/30/2022	Source
South Carolina	Governor	Democratic or Republican	N/A	$4,243.12	3/30/2022	Source
South Carolina	Governor	Unaffiliated	5% of active, registered voters	N/A	7/15/2022	Source
South Dakota	Governor	Democratic	1,615	N/A	3/29/2022	Source
South Dakota	Governor	Libertarian	50	N/A	3/29/2022	Source
South Dakota	Governor	Republican	1,730	N/A	3/29/2022	Source
South Dakota	Governor	Unaffiliated	3,393	N/A	4/26/2022	Source
Tennessee	Governor	All candidates	25	N/A	4/7/2022	Source
Texas	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	5,000	$3,750.00	12/13/2021	Source	Petition signatures only required in lieu of filing fee.
Texas	Governor	Unaffiliated	83,434	N/A	6/23/2022	Source	Signature formula: 1% of all votes cast for governor in 2018.
Vermont	Governor	Major party	500	N/A	5/26/2022	Source
Vermont	Governor	Minor party	500	N/A	8/4/2022	Source
Vermont	Governor	Unaffiliated	500	N/A	8/4/2022	Source
Wisconsin	Governor	All candidates	2,000	N/A	6/1/2022	Source

See also

• Elections
• Ballot access for major and minor party candidates
• State executive official elections, 2022
• Elections calendar
• Ballotpedia's Candidate Filing Analysis Hub, 2022