The DeKalb County Commission voted 5-1 Tuesday to retain Commissioner Larry Johnson as the board’s leader.
Commissioner Jeff Rader also sought the presiding officer seat, and his nomination was defeated 4-3.
Johnson has served as the commission's presiding officer since January 2014, but commissioners couldn't agree on who should be their leader at the beginning of this year. As a result, Johnson continued in that role.
The vote was delayed until Commissioner Mereda Davis Johnson won a special election last month, restoring the board to a full seven members for the first time in two years.
The presiding officer is responsible for setting agendas and making appointments to committees.
As presiding officer, Johnson said he wants the board to work more closely together, hire a chief of staff and strengthen committees.
He also said he wants to create a succession plan for the commission’s future leadership, possibly on a rotating basis.
“We need to show the county that we are unified and making that happen,” he said before the vote. “I want the public to know that’s something we need to focus on so we won’t have this back-and-forth.”
Rader said his agenda was to end contracting bottlenecks, fully staff committees and hire employees for the commission.
The board also voted 4-3 to keep Commissioner Stan Watson, a member of the majority, as its deputy presiding officer.
“So I guess this spirit of cooperation is going to occur at some date in the future,” Rader said before the vote on Watson’s nomination. “These words are hollow.”
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