Chattooga County Commissioner Andy Allen is holding a public called meeting this evening at the Chattooga County Civic Center in Summerville.  The purpose of the meaning is to select members of the Chattooga County Election Board.  Over the weekend, Commissioner Allen spoke with WZQZ News about the need for the meeting.

Last month, outgoing commissioner Blake Elsberry appointed members of the newly-formed election board, but Commissioner Allen says that the county’s legal counsel says that those picks were not valid because the law did not take affect until January 1, 2025.  Elsberry’s term was up at 11:59 PM on December 31, 2024, and at that time, the law that established the election board for the county was not in effect.

Allen says that he has consulted with the leadership of both the Chattooga County Republican Party and the Chattooga County Democratic Party and that they are in agreement with his decision.  Both parties sent a list of names to Commissioner Allen to choose from in selecting the new board.  The new law establishing the Chattooga County Election Board calls for two members of the local Democratic Party and two members of the local Republican Party and one “at-large” member.  Commissioner Allen says that the at-large member will be someone who is not actively involved at the local level with either political party.

Allen added that he hopes that his picks for the new board will be at tonight’s meeting so that he can introduce them to the public.  You can see an agenda for tonight’s meeting below: