Randy Shannon appointed interim mayor after 11-6 Benton County commissioners vote

Randy Shannon was appointed interim mayor by the Benton County Commissioners at their July 19 meeting after a roll-call vote that produced 11 votes for Shannon and 6 for Paul Summers.

Chair Rosanne Ward opened the floor for nominations. Ward Plant nominated Paul Summers and Commissioner Rachelle Hill nominated Randy Shannon; Dayna Ferguson nominated Rosanne Ward, who declined the nomination. Commissioner Dayna Ferguson then moved to cease nominations; Commissioner Kenneth Miller seconded the motion and the commission voted to close nominations by roll call.

Following the roll-call procedure, the commission recorded vote totals and the chair announced the result: Randy Shannon received 11 votes to Paul Summers’ six, and Shannon was appointed interim mayor. The transcript records the counts but does not attribute an individual announcement to a named speaker.

The selection followed the commission’s standard nomination-and-roll-call process; commissioners present included Rachelle Hill, Ward Plant, Dayna Ferguson and others listed in the official roll call. The commission recorded 17 members present and one member absent (Ronnie Hopper).