Broward judge rules Tamarac Commissioner Morey Wright off the Nov. 3 ballot, sparking clash at City Hall

A Broward County judge has ruled that Tamarac City Commissioner Morey Wright is not qualified to appear on the Nov. 3 ballot, throwing the city's District 2 race into doubt less than three weeks before Election Day, the city's vice mayor told Local 10 News. The ruling, which came down during the Tamarac City Commission's meeting on Wednesday night, Oct. 14, 2026, set off a heated exchange on the dais when Mayor Michelle Gomez raised it and another official tried to adjourn the meeting.

The decision follows a lawsuit filed by Wright's only opponent, former Commissioner Mike Gelin, who argued that Wright did not follow state campaign finance rules when he paid his qualifying fee. It was not immediately clear whether Wright would appeal or whether the city would need to schedule a special election for the seat.

What happened at the commission meeting

Gomez announced the ruling from the dais. "During this meeting, a ruling came out that said that Commissioner Wright was not going to be qualified to be on the ballot in November," she said, according to Local 10.

As she spoke, another official tried to adjourn the meeting, arguing that the matter was not on the agenda. Gomez refused to stop. "You are the one who brought it up. I am making a comment and I am going to use my personal privilege. You do not have to like it," she said.

The mayor told residents that the ruling did not necessarily mean District 2 voters would be left without a voice. "You have fear mongering going among you," Gomez said.

She described the decision as one step in a process that is not finished. "Yes the ruling came out, yes there is opportunity for appeal, and yes there is a city charter to determine on whether or not this needs to be set for a new special set District 2 election, and those will be determined by the actual experts, not anybody on this dais," Gomez said. "So please do not have a panic that your voices will not be heard."

The lawsuit behind the ruling

Gelin, who previously represented District 2, filed suit on Sept. 8 seeking to disqualify Wright, the incumbent, from the Nov. 3 election, according to the local news site Tamarac Talk. The complaint named Wright, the City of Tamarac and Broward County Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott as defendants.

The core allegation was procedural. Gelin argued that Wright had not properly appointed himself as a deputy campaign treasurer before he signed the campaign check used to pay his qualifying fee, Tamarac Talk reported. Wright and Gelin were the only two candidates who qualified for the District 2 seat, so a ruling in Gelin's favor would leave him as the only name in the race.

Wright's attorney had asked the court to give the commissioner enough time to prepare a defense, arguing that he should not face what the attorney called a "trial by ambush," according to Tamarac Talk. A hearing in the case had been set for Oct. 9 before Broward Circuit Judge Michael A. Robinson. Local 10's report did not name the judge who issued the ruling or describe the court's reasoning.

Why a signature on a check matters

The dispute turns on Florida's campaign finance law, Chapter 106 of the Florida Statutes, which sets strict rules for how candidates handle campaign money.

Under section 106.021, every candidate must appoint a campaign treasurer and designate a campaign bank account before qualifying for office. Most candidates may also appoint up to three deputy treasurers, and the names and addresses of the treasurer and any deputies must be filed with the officer before whom the candidate qualifies.

Section 106.11 says a campaign treasurer or deputy treasurer may spend money from the campaign account only by a bank check drawn on that account, and that each check must carry the signature of the treasurer or a deputy treasurer. A candidate who signs a campaign check without having been formally appointed as a treasurer or deputy treasurer may run afoul of that requirement, which is the heart of the argument Gelin made about Wright's qualifying fee check.

The ballots are already printed

The timing creates practical problems. Scott's office took no position on whether Wright should be disqualified, but its attorneys warned in court filings that the relief Gelin sought "presents significant election-administration concerns at this advanced stage of the election process," according to Tamarac Talk.

Ballots for the Nov. 3 election had already been printed, and the elections office's attorneys proposed that voters be notified if Wright were disqualified rather than reprinting ballots, Tamarac Talk reported.

How votes cast for Wright would be treated, and whether Gelin would simply be declared the winner, depends on the final outcome of the case and on Tamarac's charter, which Gomez said would guide whether a special election is required.

The candidates

Wright won the District 2 seat in November 2022, defeating four other candidates. In December 2023, his colleagues unanimously chose him to serve a one-year term as vice mayor, according to a city news release. He is a University of Florida graduate who holds two master's degrees from Johns Hopkins University, according to the city, and he was born in the Virgin Islands, according to the Caribbean news outlet Caribbean Today. Gelin held the District 2 seat before him and left it in 2022 to run for mayor. Gomez, a former District 2 commissioner herself, won a new term as mayor this year without opposition, Tamarac Talk reported.

Local 10's report did not include comment from Wright or Gelin on the ruling.

What's next

Wright can ask an appeals court to review the decision. Appeals from Broward circuit court go to Florida's Fourth District Court of Appeal in West Palm Beach. If the ruling stands, city officials and the Supervisor of Elections will have to decide how to handle votes already cast and whether the city charter requires a special election for District 2.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.