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Mukwonago board to fill trustee vacancy by appointment until April 2027 after 4–2 vote; applications to be accepted
Summary
After debate about election timing and statutory constraints, the Village Board voted 4–2 to fill a trustee vacancy by appointment until the April 2027 election and directed staff to publicize and accept applications for the seat.
The Village of Mukwonago Board voted May 6 to fill a vacant trustee seat by appointment until the April 2027 election, and directed staff to accept applications for the position.
Clerk (title only in transcript) outlined options for the board: appoint someone for a limited term and place the appointee on the next regular ballot, hold a special election (which the clerk said could cost roughly $7,000–$9,000 if held outside a regular election cycle), or leave the seat vacant until the next scheduled elections. Board members and residents debated timing: some said they preferred an appointment with a subsequent contested election; others argued voters should choose at the next feasible election date.
Village attorney Nathan Bayer read village code provisions and discussed state statute, saying the code contains a provision that vacancies "shall be filled by appointment by a majority vote of the village board for the remainder of the unexpired term," but that state statute provides multiple options and would allow a temporary appointment with a later election for the remainder of the term. "I think you can fill it, but I can't possibly read that to mandate that the body involuntarily fill it by appointment for a full 3 year term," Bayer said.
A motion to fill the open position by appointment until the spring 2027 election was made and seconded. The board held a roll-call vote and the motion passed 4–2. The clerk then said the village will accept applications and staff agreed to publicize the vacancy via a press release and weekly communications; the clerk suggested collecting applications through early June (some discussion referenced a June 3/June end-of-month timeline in the meeting). The board did not nominate a candidate at the special meeting.
The transcript records concerns from trustees and residents about voter involvement and the timing of ballots. Attorney Bayer and staff said statutory options and administrative deadlines (candidate filing deadlines and ballot programming) affect whether the vacancy could be placed on an upcoming primary or general election.
