Cloverdale council debates appointment vs. special election after member announces resignation

Cloverdale City Council members on Feb. 12 discussed how to fill the seat left vacant by Councilmember Chris Walter, who announced he will resign at the end of the month. City staff told the council it must either call a special election or make an appointment within 60 days of Feb. 20.

City staff explained the two options and gave a preliminary cost estimate for a special election. “We can call a special election. We don't have the exact estimated cost of that, but it's likely to be at least $20,000,” a city staff member said during the meeting.

The issue drew public comment and several speakers urged an appointment rather than a special election. Molly Fisher, co‑chair of the Cloverdale Democratic Club, said the club circulated a petition urging the council to appoint a candidate and reported the petition had gathered signatures. “By the time I submitted [it] to city council, we had 50. And now…we have 60,” Fisher said. Andres Marquez, who identified himself as the November election runner‑up, asked the council to give weight to voters’ results: “The runner‑up is a position that requires votes and support, which I ask that you place some value in.”

Other residents said appointing the runner‑up would respect the recent election results. Shirley Diaz told the council, “Have you heard the word democracy? The people have spoken.” Councilmember Chris Walter, announcing his resignation earlier in the meeting, said he was “really sad that I have to leave the city council,” and thanked colleagues before explaining his decision to step down.

Council members expressed differing views on process. Some members said appointing an experienced person would keep continuity and oversight of ongoing city matters; others argued for an open recruitment and interview process so new applicants could be considered. One councilmember recalled previous appointments that did not include interviews and said an open process lets anyone interested compete for the seat.

A motion to appoint a replacement was made during the meeting and a vote was taken. The transcript records at least one recorded vote: Councilmember Chris Walter registered an abstention; Councilmember Laski voted yes; other individual votes are not clearly recorded in the portion of the transcript provided. The transcript does not include a complete roll call tally or a clearly stated final outcome of the motion, and the council did not record full vote tallies in the excerpt available.

Under state rules described to the council, the body must decide within 60 days of Feb. 20 whether to hold a special election or appoint someone to the seat. If the council chooses a special election, staff warned the city would bear most of the election costs, since a special election likely would not coincide with other contests that share costs.

Next steps identified at the meeting included possible recruitment or interview procedures if the council elects to appoint, and staff follow‑up on the cost estimate and timing if members prefer a special election. The council did not publish a definitive schedule for making the final decision in the transcript excerpt provided.