§ 153A-27.1. Vacancies on board of commissioners in certain counties.
§ 153A‑27.1. Vacancieson board of commissioners in certain counties.
(a) If a vacancy occurson the board of commissioners, the remaining members of the board shall appointa qualified person to fill the vacancy. If the number of vacancies on the boardis such that a quorum of the board cannot be obtained, the chairman of theboard shall appoint enough members to make up a quorum, and the board shallthen proceed to fill the remaining vacancies. If the number of vacancies on theboard is such that a quorum of the board cannot be obtained and the office ofchairman is vacant, the clerk of superior court of the county shall fill thevacancies upon the request of any remaining member of the board or upon thepetition of any registered voters of the county.
(b) If the member beingreplaced was serving a two‑year term, or if the member was serving a four‑yearterm and the vacancy occurs later than 60 days before the general election heldafter the first two years of the term, the appointment to fill the vacancy isfor the remainder of the unexpired term. Otherwise, the term of the personappointed to fill the vacancy extends to the first Monday in December nextfollowing the first general election held more than 60 days after the day thevacancy occurs; at that general election, a person shall be elected to the seatvacated for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(c) To be eligible forappointment to fill a vacancy, a person must (i) be a member of the samepolitical party as the member being replaced, if that member was elected as thenominee of a political party, and (ii) be a resident of the same district asthe member being replaced, if the county is divided into electoral districts.
(d) If the member whovacated the seat was elected as a nominee of a political party, the board ofcommissioners, the chairman of the board, or the clerk of superior court, asthe case may be, shall consult the county executive committee of theappropriate political party before filling the vacancy, and shall appoint theperson recommended by the county executive committee of the political party ofwhich the commissioner being replaced was a member, if the party makes arecommendation within 30 days of the occurrence of the vacancy.
(e) Whenever because ofG.S. 153A‑58(3)b. or because of any local act, only the qualified votersof an area which is less than the entire county were eligible to vote in thegeneral election for the member whose seat is vacant, the appointing authoritymust accept the recommendation only if the county executive committeerestricted voting to committee members who represent precincts all or part ofwhich were within the territorial area of the district of the countycommissioner.
(f) The provisions ofany local act which provides that a county executive committee of a politicalparty shall fill any vacancy on a board of county commissioners are repealed.
(g) Counties subject tothis section are not subject to G.S. 153A‑27.
(h) This section shallapply only in the following counties: Alamance, Alexander, Alleghany, Avery,Beaufort, Brunswick, Buncombe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Carteret, Cherokee,Clay, Cleveland, Cumberland, Dare, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Graham, Guilford,Haywood, Henderson, Hyde, Jackson, Lee, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell,Mecklenburg, Moore, Pender, Polk, Randolph, Rockingham, Rutherford, Sampson,Stanly, Stokes, Transylvania, Wake, and Yancey. (1981, c. 763, ss. 6, 14; c.830; 1983, c. 418; 1985, c. 563, s. 7.2; 1987, c. 196, s. 1; 1989, c. 296; c.497, s. 2; 1991, c. 395, s. 1; c. 558, s. 1; 1995 (Reg. Sess., 1996), c. 683,s. 1; 1997‑88, s. 1; 2009‑32, s. 1.)