Candidates may qualify for an election as follows:

(1) Nomination through a political party primary;

(2) Filing a notice of candidacy and affidavit and paying a qualifying fee or filing a pauper’s affidavit with a pauper’s petition in conjunction with:

(A) Filing a nomination petition declared lawful pursuant to Code Section 21-2-171 either as an independent candidate or as a nominee of a political body, if duly certified by the chairperson and the secretary of the political body as having been nominated in a duly constituted political body convention as prescribed in Code Section 21-2-172;

(B) Nomination for a state-wide office by a duly constituted political body convention as prescribed in Code Section 21-2-172 if the political body making the nomination has qualified to nominate candidates for state-wide public office under the provisions of Code Section 21-2-180;

(C) Candidacy in a special election as prescribed in subsection (e) of Code Section 21-2-132;

(D) Qualifying as an incumbent candidate to succeed such incumbent as prescribed in subsection (e) of Code Section 21-2-132; or

(E) Candidacy for election to a nonpartisan office;

(3) In the case of an election for presidential electors, nomination as prescribed by rules of a political party and subsection (f) of Code Section 21-2-153; or

(4) Substitute nomination by a political party or body as prescribed in Code Section 21-2-134.