Clawson Councilperson Who Lost Election Resigns to Accept Partial Term Appointment
(Crystal A. Proxmire, Nov. 4, 2021)
Clawson, MI – A Clawson City Councilperson resigned Wednesday night from a partial term council seat he was appointed to, in order to be appointed to the newly vacant seat giving him another year on council in spite of losing his bid to retain a seat in the Nov. 2 election.
The Councilperson is George Paul Georges. He had been appointed to council following the resignation of Kathy Phillips, who left earlier this year as required by the city charter so she could run for Mayor. Paula Millan, who was also on council and running for mayor, left the vacancy for which Georges resigned his current seat in order to be appointed to. One of those vacancies was not on the ballot because the resignation was accepted after the filing deadline, meaning it would have to be filled by appointment.
Had Georges not resigned or accepted the appointment, filling the vacancy would have occurred at the organizational meeting under the leadership of the new mayor and council.
Prior to the votes, City Attorney Remis Nushja explained that the position would be filled by the new council at the organizational meeting. However Mayor Reese Scripture, who did not seek re-election, asked Georges to resign then moved for his appointment to fill the vacancy. The item was not on the agenda; the discussion came up during the City Attorney’s report at the end of the meeting.
Sue Moffit was the only councilperson to vote no. She asked Nushia if the appointment could be undone by the council at the organizational meeting and he said that he did not believe there was a way to do that. Supporting the resignation and appointment were Glenn Shepard and Louis Sampson, along with Mayor Scripture.
In the Clawson Election, Bruce Anderson (1,363 votes) and Glenn Shepard (1212 votes) earned seats. Shepard had been appointed earlier this year. The first runner up was Scott Tinlin with 795 votes. George Paul Georges was fourth with 730 votes. Also in the election, Paula Millan was elected mayor.
Georges may stay in the city council position through the Nov. 8, 2022 election.
Oakland County Times reached out to Scripture who declined giving comment. Georges did not respond to our request. This story will be updated if more information becomes available.
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