News

By Sallie James

    If someone was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Boca Raton City Council, that person could serve up to two years without voter approval.
    It’s a dynamic that council member Scott Singer thinks is just too long.
    Singer has proposed a charter amendment that would require council vacancies to be filled by special election. Singer introduced the proposed charter change at the April 26 council meeting, saying the amendment would put control back into voters’ hands.
    “When the city switched to the three-year term and election cycle, it left open the possibility that voters would have an appointed member who served nearly two-thirds of the term before an election,” Singer said. A deputy mayor who fills a mayoral vacancy could also serve nearly two years, he noted.
    “Shouldn’t residents have the greatest say?” Singer said.
    The measure would come before voters on the Aug. 30 ballot if council members approve the amendment.
    According to the proposed change, a special election to fill a council vacancy would be held no more than 60 days after the day the vacancy occurred, or as soon as possible. But if the vacancy occurred within 150 days of a previously scheduled federal, state, countywide or regular city election, the special election could be held concurrently with the previously scheduled election.
    The charter change does allow for a temporary council appointment to serve until the office is filled by election.
    The same parameters would apply for mayoral vacancies.
    “Giving residents the right to choose their elected officials, rather than by appointment, is much more representative of democracy,” Singer said. “While this issue comes up rarely, when it does, I think people should have their say.”