Tony Henry, El Dorado alderman-elect, will take his place on the El Dorado City Council before the end of the year.
Henry, who previously served as alderman of Ward 3, Position 2, won the May 22 preferential, Democratic primary in another bid for the seat he vacated when he ran for El Dorado mayor in 2014.
Henry bested challenger Andre Rucks 202 - 141 in the primary election.
Alderman Kensel Spivey — who currently holds the Ward 3, Position 2 council seat — announced earlier this year that she did not plan to seek re-election because she will be getting married and moving to another ward.
Spivey has served on the council since 2015. Her wedding to Jeremy Green will be held at 5 p.m. on June 16 in the El Dorado Municipal Auditorium.
During a regular council meeting on May 24, Spivey discussed her intention to resign, saying that her last regular council meeting as representative of Ward 3 will be June 7 .
While making a presentation on an unrelated matter, Robert Reynolds, chairman of the El Dorado Works Board, thanked Mayor Frank Hash, a retired U.S. Army colonel, for his service to the city and the country.
Hash was defeated in a three-way mayoral race during the preferential primary last week.
His Republican opponents, Bill Luther and Chris Lutman, will face each other in a runoff election on June 19.
Hash will close out his second term as mayor on Dec. 31.
“Well, I’ve still got seven months to go,” Hash told Reynolds, drawing a laugh from the audience on May 24.
He used Reynolds’s comments as a segue to discuss Spivey’s pending resignation.
Hash acknowledged Henry, who was in the audience, and asked City Attorney Henry Kinslow how to properly handle the matter.
Kinslow said Spivey may formally tender a verbal resignation during the June 7 council meeting, and aldermen may then appoint Henry to fill the unexpired term for the remainder of the year.
Hash said City Clerk Heather McVay is authorized to swear Henry into office.
Henry will again be sworn in on Jan 1 to begin his two-year term on the council.
Tia Lyons may be contacted at 870-862-6611 or by email at tlyons@ eldoradonews.com.