Courtesy CBS 2 News
Boise City Council will soon see two vacancies, as council members vacate their seats. New leadership is working to move forward, with the hope the seats could be filled in the coming months.
Elaine Clegg, who served since 2003, with several terms as President of the Council, will leave the council over the next few months as she steps into a new position as CEO of Valley Regional Transit.
Lisa Sánchez, who was President Pro Tem of the council, was forced to vacate her seat after she changed residency. Sánchez’ move put her outside her district (District 3). State statute says that if an elected official moves out of an area they represent, they automatically vacate their position.
New President of the Council Holli Woodings spoke on the conversations and legal analysis that led to Sánchez’ exit.
“Leading up to that decision, our city legal department did some legal analysis to look at state statute, city ordinance, and see what the code says,” Woodings said. “And state statute is very clear, that when somebody moves out of a district, they have vacated their seat.”
Woodings spoke about what’s in the immediate future for city council.
” (We are) making sure that everyone’s questions are answered,” Woodings said. “Making sure that we do everything on the up and up, legally, and figuring out how to try to path forward.”
The city council will continue its current work with five members for the time being. A new appointment will be made in the coming months by the mayor, but no word on the process for that appointment has been made.
Still, Sánchez does have a potential path back to Boise City Council in the future.
“If Lisa decided to move back into district 3, she would then have to reside in district three for 30 days in order to become a qualified elector,” Woodings said.
From that point, it’s unclear what would have to happen for Sánchez’s return, but the door is open. Woodings said that Sánchez apparently has found residency within 3, and could be looking into this option.
CBS2 reached out to Sánchez for comment, and is waiting to hear back.
