New mayor to be elected in March

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Cleveland sets special election; qualifying to be held this month

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  • A special election to select a new mayor will be Tuesday, March 24.
    A special election to select a new mayor will be Tuesday, March 24.
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Cleveland has set a special election to select a new mayor, following the recent resignation of Shan Ash.

The special election will be Tuesday, March 24, as approved by the Cleveland City Council at its Monday, Jan. 6, meeting. Voting will take place that day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the First Baptist Church fellowship hall at 25 Church Street in Cleveland.

The qualifying period for mayoral candidates will be Monday, Jan. 27, through Wednesday, Jan. 29, at Cleveland City Hall from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day. There is a $138 qualifying fee.

For those not already registered to vote, the deadline to register in time for the special election is Monday, Feb. 24, by 5 p.m. at the White County Board of Elections and Registration, 1241 Helen Highway, Suite 210-A, in Cleveland.

Early voting for the special election will be held from March 2 to March 20 at Cleveland City Hall during regular business hours.

The election is needed after former mayor Ash submitted a resignation letter on Monday, Dec. 30. He had been re-elected earlier that year for another four-year term, and was to be sworn in that same day. However, he turned in his resignation letter a few hours before the swearing in, citing “unforeseen recent events” as his reason for stepping away.

Councilwoman Annie Sutton was selected as the mayor pro tem by fellow council members during the Dec. 30 meeting. She will lead the meetings until a new mayor is elected.