Lenoir City Council appoints Walter Johnson as interim city judge amid election-contest dispute

At a Lenoir City Council meeting, council members voted to appoint City Attorney Walter Johnson as interim city judge until the next general election in August 2026, after Judge Greg Harrison resigned following a Tennessee Supreme Court declaration that he was ineligible to serve.

The action came amid an ongoing chancery election-contest case in which Robin McNabb has filed a motion seeking to be declared the winner of the 2022 municipal judge election and has asked for discretionary litigation costs and roughly $199,500 in back pay. McNabb told the council she would not accept an appointment unless she received assurances on back pay; council members said they lacked authority to pay that amount without a court order.

Council members described a statutory and charter-limited process for filling the vacancy. City legal staff told the council the city charter requires council appointment of a successor when a vacancy exists and that an appointee serves until the next general municipal election, which the council said would be held in August 2026 unless a chancellor orders otherwise. The council also noted the chancery court has remanded aspects of the election contest to Chancellor McFarland.

“I'm not going to accept the position… I should have had the position initially, and I'm not going to to waive that right to back pay,” Robin McNabb said, referring to her decision not to accept an interim appointment without a resolution of the back-pay claim.

Mayor (name not specified) framed the council's limits: “I don't have the authority to run to the check. I don't think this council has the authority,” he said when members discussed a request that the city provide roughly $199,500 in back pay and related costs.

Council discussion recounted that the city has already paid roughly $45,000 in attorney fees to Scott Jones in connection with litigation for Greg Harrison. McNabb has asked the chancery court to add Mandy Smith as a party to the election-contest lawsuit and to declare McNabb the rightful winner on grounds that other candidates were ineligible; council members said those determinations rest with the courts.

After discussion, Councilmember Brandon moved to appoint Walter Johnson as city judge until the August 2026 general election; Councilmember Simpson seconded. On a roll call Councilmember McMahon recorded an abstention; Councilmembers Waldron, Kennedy, Shields, Brandon and Simpson voted yes. The motion carried.

The council indicated it would not itself declare a winner in the election contest or authorize payment of the requested back pay without a court order, but several members said they would tell Chancellor McFarland the city would not oppose court relief if the chancellor granted it. The council also said it would return with a formal recommendation for filling the judge vacancy at the next meeting if further steps were required.

Other routine business at the meeting included a motion to pay bills with legal proof of funds available and an item on 9-1-1 service billing; those motions were advanced on the council floor during the same session.