Resignations may leave Cape City Council shorthanded

Monday's resignation of Ward 4 councilman Hugh White may be the first of two resignations that would leave the Cape Girardeau City Council shorthanded for more than six months.

Ward 3 councilman Jay Purcell will resign later this year if he wins his race for Cape Girardeau County commissioner on Nov. 2.

If that happens, the seven-member council could be left with only five members until a special election is held next year.

Mayor Jay Knudtson said a special election likely won't be held until June.

City attorney Eric Cunningham said both state law and the city's charter allow for elections only on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in February, April, June, August and November.

In addition, Cunningham said, the city has to allow time for a filing period and for a possible primary election should more than two candidates run for a single council seat. If that happens, a primary would be held in April, he said.

The council can't fill the vacancies by appointment because the next municipal election is more than a year away -- April 2006, Cunningham said.

Both White and Purcell were re-elected in April of this year to four-year terms after running unopposed.

The possibility of having two vacancies could make it more difficult for the council to pass ordinances on controversial issues, city officials said.

"We have to have four votes to approve anything and an emergency measure has to have five votes," Cunningham said. "If there is a dispute on something, a 3-2 vote won't cut it."

Knudtson said he's confident the council can govern with fewer than seven members. "But it's critical that all five members attend every meeting," he said.

White's resignation surprised council members Monday night. White didn't attend the meeting, but submitted a written letter of resignation.

White, who has been working as a real estate agent, said in the letter that he had accepted a job that would require him to be out of town weekdays and on some weekends. "As a result, I am unable to properly serve my constituency as a city councilman," he wrote.

White didn't return phone calls on Tuesday.

"I am disappointed that we lost councilman White," the mayor said. "He was a quiet man, but when he spoke he had great passion and great logic."

mbliss@semissourian.com

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