Doc Pullen Appointed To Complete Remaining District One Term
By LYDIA BERGLAR
News Editor
In a special called meeting on the afternoon of Nov. 18, the Dade County Board of Commissioners appointed Dr. William Pullen Jr., often referred to as “Doc,” to fulfill the remaining portion of Lamar Lowery’s term as District 1 commissioner. (Due to the Sentinel’s tight Monday afternoon printing deadline, full coverage of the meeting will be included in next week’s paper.)
When it comes to filling commissioner vacancies, Dade County’s local ordinances differ from the Official Code of Georgia (O.C.G.A.) and the Association County Commissioners of Georgia’s (ACCG) “Handbook for Georgia County Commissioners.”
The state ordinances (and the ACCG’s explanation of these ordinances) note that counties may have local acts. (See O.C.G.A. 36-5-21.) Where there are no local acts, special elections shall be held for terms with more than six months remaining. When there are fewer than six months in the term, the superior court judge appoints a successor.
Both sources note that unless local law requires otherwise, the remaining board members constitute the commission during the interim until the special election is carried out.
Lowanna Vaughan (elections supervisor at the Dade County Board of Elections) reported that each election costs the county about $15,000. Our local ordinances attempt to save the county from this expense, meaning our codes differ significantly from the state’s.
Dade’s Code of Ordinances 1-1-1.07 explains that during the first two years of a term, if a seat is vacated 35 or more days before the November general election, the remaining commissioners appoint an interim to serve within 15 days of the vacancy. A special election is then held on the same day as the general election. The electee will take office within ten days of the election results and serve the remaining unexpired term.
Interestingly, Ted Rumley (county executive) explained that he doesn’t feel that 35 days offers candidates enough time to announce candidacy and campaign, but the commission has yet to face that particular situation.
However, in the case at hand for the District 1 seat, these provisions do not apply because the seat was not vacated 35 or more days before this November’s election.
Therefore, the second provision applies. It reads, “The remaining members of the board shall appoint, within 15 days after the vacancy occurs, a successor to serve out the remaining unexpired term and until a successor is elected and qualified.”
The Sentinel asked Rumley to clarify this last phrase (about a successor being elected and qualified). He explained that no special election is required, so for this situation, the successor will be elected in the next general election (November 2026).
Rumley said that the commission selected Pullen as someone who wouldn’t want to run again but who is willing to serve out the rest of the term. He explained that an appointed member would have an unfair advantage heading into the next election as an incumbent. However, this is what happened in the case of current District 4 commissioner, Melissa Bradford.
In Bradford’s case, the first set of provisions applied, and the commission followed the ordinance appropriately, but she did choose to run in the November election and had the advantage of being an incumbent.
Allan Bradford died on March 23, 2021. Melissa Bradford was appointed within 15 days of his death and served until the Nov. 2021 election. Having won the election, she is currently serving out the rest of the term through this year. Having won the 2024 election again, she begins her first full four-year term in 2025.
