By AMY JONES / Associate Editor

INDIAN SPRINGS — Current Indian Springs Town Council member Stewart Dudley is ineligible for this year’s mayoral race after failing to submit required paperwork, according to current Mayor Steve Zerkis.

By state law, all elected officials in Alabama are required to submit a completed statement of economic interest each year to the Alabama Ethics Commission, Zerkis said through an email. A statement of economic interest is a public document used to disclose financial interests.

This year’s deadline to submit the statement was April 30, Zerkis said.

“All candidates for municipal office must submit this form when they announce their candidacy for a position,” Zerkis said in the email.

However, he said if a candidate is already an elected official and has already submitted a statement of economic interest, then the candidate does not need to submit another.

Zerkis said Dudley did not submit his statement of economic interest when he announced his candidacy, and the Alabama Ethics Commission did not already have a statement on file.

Officials with the Alabama Ethics Commission confirmed that Dudley has not submitted a statement of economic interest and is not qualified for the municipal election.

With Dudley’s removal from the race, Brenda Bell-Guercio is the only candidate for the Indian Springs mayoral race. The municipal election is Aug. 28.

Dudley did not immediately return messages seeking comment.