One Nashville resident has raised concerns about the way the Metro City Council and Davidson County Election Commission have planned to fill the seat of a former city council member forced to resign amid scandal.
In January, Loniel Greene resigned his seat as city councilman for District One following allegations he tried to coerce a witness in a brutal domestic assault case. Metro City Council and the Davidson County Election Commission said that under the current charter the seat will be filled during the already planned county election in August.
Yet, one constituent in District One has sued Metro on grounds that a special election needs to be held sooner.
"We understand those concerns however we have state laws that govern how we proceed with each election . Whenever an election is held we’re going to follow statue, procedure, we’ll follow the guidance from the state office to make sure every citizen is allowed to voice their voice and choice of an electorate," said Joan Nixon, Deputy Administrator of Elections for Davidson County.
Nixon added that if a court were to rule a special election needed to be held they would be ready as quickly as possible.
"We could do it very quickly," she added.
So far four potential candidates have pulled paperwork to have their name on the August ballot: Nick Leonardo, Reuben Dockery, Slyvester Armor and William Mason.
If no changes are mandated by the Tennessee Court of Appeals, the vacant district one seat will be on the Aug. 4 ballot with a run off election set for September. Candidates have until April 7 to file their paperwork for the August election.
