Sanford election postponed to 2022
Jun. 17—Sanford's local elections are being postponed to 2022, giving several city officials an extra four months in office. Broadway elections, on the other hand, will take place on time, during Election Day on Nov. 2.
Sanford is one of 35 North Carolina cities forced to postpone its election this year after a delay in the redistricting process. Sanford, like dozens of other towns across the state, redraws its district lines every 10 years based on population data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau.
As the city's population grows, the boundaries of it's five electoral wards must be redrawn so each have a roughly equal number of people, creating equal representation. Only people living in certain districts can vote for certain candidates.
Last year, however, the coronavirus pandemic delayed the decennial census and, by extension, the redrawing of Sanford's wards. Up-to-date information on the city's population won't be released by the Census Bureau until September, making a November election impossible.
A bill passed by the state legislature this month postpones elections in cities that elect council members by district. The bill is now before Gov. Roy Cooper and is expected to be signed this week.
"Incumbents would serve until their successors can be elected," said Sanford attorney Susan Patterson at the city council's meeting Tuesday. "It's important that the public understand that all of this is really out of the hands of the city council. The fix has been done by the legislature."
Sanford's elections were originally set for Nov. 2, with candidates allowed to file in July and August. If signed by the governor, the state law will push the election to April 26.
Depending on how quickly city officials can redraw districts, the filing period for candidates would open either Dec. 6-17 or Jan. 3-7. A primary, if necessary, would take place March 8. Elections in 2023 would take place as normal.
Broadway elections will also take place as normal, since the town is not one that elects representatives by district.
Sanford officials whose terms are up this year are Mayor Chet Mann; councilman Sam Gaskins, who represents Ward 1; councilman J.D. Williams, who represents Ward 3; and councilman Chas Post, who represents the city at large.
Each of these officials are expected to serve an additional four months in office until they face challengers.
The city has been forced to delay elections in previous years because of the decennial census, City Manager Hal Hegwer said Tuesday.
"This has happened before," Hegwer said. "This is nothing new."
