With councilmember Dontae Payne moving on to become Olympia mayor on December 31, the city is now seeking applicants to fill his vacant seat for the rest of the term.
Payne is currently occupying the #6 seat in the city council. He won the city’s mayoral contest in the November 7 elections with 11,197 votes or 69.50% of the ballots received. Council position #1 is the mayor's seat.
“The appointee will serve from the time of their appointment until the certification of the November 2025 General Election results,” the city explained in a press release. “To serve out the remainder of the Position #6 term, which ends December 31, 2025, the appointee would have to be elected to the position in the General Election.”
Interested community members must apply online and must have the following documents to be submitted before 4 p.m. Friday, December 15:
Applicants must also be verified as living in the city.
The City Council will review applications and finalize the selection process, including interview dates, on January 2 next year and interview applicants on January 8.
Olympia expects the appointee to be seated by the meeting on January 9, 2024.
Questions, concerns and clarifications can be sent to Executive Services Assistant Dawn Carvalho through email or 360-753-8065.
Community members can access the application and learn more about the City Council online through the City website.
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BobJacobs
What this article misses is that the Mayor position is not separate from the council. It is council position #1. The primary work of the position is the same as the other six councilmembers. The mayor's position (in Olympia and Lacey) just adds a few duties like signing certain documents.
Very few people know this. Most people seem to think that all mayors are chief executives (like Tumwater). That is the traditional way city governments are organized. But in the council-manager form of government the mayor is just another councilmember and the city manager is the chief executive, reporting to the council.
Even the Voters Pamphlet gets this wrong.
Bob Jacobs
Thursday, November 30, 2023 Report this