Montgomery County commission elects Wes Golin chair and Joe Smith mayor pro tem amid calls to reform nominating process

The Montgomery County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 8 reappointed Mayor Wes Golin as chair of the legislative body for a term expiring Sept. 2026 and elected Commissioner Joe Smith as mayor pro tem after a roll-call vote that divided the commission.

The nominating committee, chaired by Commissioner Walker Woodruff, formally nominated Mayor Wes Golin as chair; the clerk reported the vote for chair as 20 yeses, 0 noes and 0 abstentions. The nomination for mayor pro tem was contested: the nominating committee nominated Commissioner Joe Smith, but Commissioner Lehi (appearing in the record as Commissioner Leverett in later remarks) also received floor nominations. The clerk tallied 12 votes for Joe Smith and 8 for Commissioner Leverett, and the commission declared Smith elected as mayor pro tem.

Commissioners used the nominations debate to press for clearer rules governing how the nominating committee selects candidates. Commissioner Gannon described the committee's usual approach as reviewing who serves on the fewest committees and spreading assignments to avoid overloading members. "The nominating committee goes through and looks at who's on the least number of committees and that's how they make their selection," Gannon said.

Other commissioners said the current practice produces poor optics and a perception of exclusion. Commissioner Bill said the recurring selection of the same small group of people "does not look good" and urged broader opportunity: "All 21 of us earned our seats at this table. So we deserve an equal opportunity to be able to serve in this role." Commissioner Shelton urged the commission to consider changing the process to increase transparency—either by requiring mayoral recommendation from the floor or allowing nominations only from the floor so the public clearly sees how the choice is made.

Commissioner David Harper noted one practical constraint: the mayor pro tem traditionally serves on the budget committee, which imposes a time commitment that can disqualify otherwise willing commissioners. "There are several of us that are qualified to do that, but have conflicts in serving on the budget committee," Harper said, adding that scheduling and workload factor into who can serve.

Public commenters and supporters of Commissioner Rasheeda Leverett, who was nominated from the floor, also spoke during the meeting. Mary Richards described Leverett's doctorate in organization and leadership and argued selections should weigh merit as well as collegial relationships. "When we look at selecting people, we should look at their merits and their qualifications rather than who gets along best with the mayor," Richards said.

The commission held a brief recess before completing the mayor pro tem roll call. The clerk announced the final tally for mayor pro tem as 12 votes for Joe Smith and 8 for Commissioner Leverett; the commission then recognized Smith with congratulations.

The decisions leave the commission with Mayor Wes Golin as chair and Commissioner Joe Smith as mayor pro tem through September 2026. Several commissioners indicated they will pursue clarifying or changing the nominating committee’s procedures in the coming months.

The meeting proceeded to the public comment and consent agenda after the elections.