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Commission discusses proposal to change mayoral term from two to four years
Summary
The Charter Review Committee recommended extending the mayoral term to four years to align with zone commissioners; commissioners debated whether this reduces voters' opportunity to change a majority and whether it should be combined with term limits.
The Charter Review Committee proposed changing the mayor's term from two years to four to align election cycles with zone commissioners and to give the mayor more time in office to gain experience and focus on governance rather than frequent campaigning. "The change from 2 to 4 years will align with the zone commissioners, afford the mayor additional time to gain experience," committee chair Mark Billings said during his presentation.
Opponents at the workshop — including several public commenters — argued a four-year mayoral term could reduce voter control because the commission majority appears every two years on ballots. Commissioner Jason McGirt and others noted that term limits were discussed by the committee and explicitly not included. Supervisor of Elections Lisa Lewis told the commission she did not recall any instance in Volusia County where an entire commission majority was voted out in a single election, a fact commissioners used to frame the merits and risks of the proposal. The commission will consider refined ballot language at the Aug. 12 reading and may decide whether the measure appears on a November special election or the 2026 regular cycle.
