(1) The name of any qualified elector who is otherwise eligible under the provisions of subsection (1) of Section 37-7-203 who shall desire to be a candidate for the office of trustee must qualify in the following manner in order to be allowed to be considered for election. By 5:00 p.m. no more than one hundred five (105) days and not less than seventy-five (75) days before the election, he or she shall file with the county election commissioners a petition signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors of the area represented by the office which he or she seeks, either for a full term or an unexpired term, as the case may be, and an affidavit by the candidate offering for election stating his or her qualifications under the terms of the section. If the seventy-fifth day before the election falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the petition and the affidavit required under this section shall be filed by 5:00 p.m. on the business day immediately following the Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday. Where there are less than one hundred (100) qualified electors in said area represented by the trustee, it shall only be required that said petition of nomination be signed by at least twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors in said area. The petition shall contain an affidavit certifying that all signatures are the personal signatures of each person whose name appears on the petition and that each person is a qualified elector.
(2) Unless the petition and affidavit required in subsection (1) of this section are filed by 5:00 p.m. not less than seventy-five (75) days prior to the election, the name of the candidate shall not be considered in the election, and votes cast for any person who has failed to qualify shall not be counted in the election.
(3) If after the time for candidates to file the petition and affidavit provided for in this section there should be only one (1) person to qualify for the office of trustee, then no election or notice of election shall be necessary and such person shall, if otherwise qualified, be declared elected without opposition.