The Madison Common Council is seeking to fill the vacancy of District 12 alder after former alder Syed Abbas resigned last month, according to a press release from the Common Council.
Abbas announced his resignation Nov. 24 because he wanted to spend more time with his family, among other reasons, according to a blog post from Abbas’s page on the City of Madison website.
“A call has gone out for folks who meet the criteria for the alternate selection process — that would be county supervisors or former alders who want to volunteer to serve the rest of the term,” District 2 alder Patrick Heck said.
Only certain people are allowed to apply to temporarily fill this position due to the alternate selection process taking place, according to Heck. Since then, the Council received four resumes for the open position, with three stating they would also be running to serve a complete term in the election April 24.
The Common Council chose to use an alternate selection process because they believe there is too little time between now and the spring elections to completely onboard a new alder, according to the Common Council press release.
The Council is responsible for the city’s legislation and budget and is comprised of 20 alders. According to the Madison City Council website, alders must liaise between committees and their communities, sponsor legislation that is important to their constituents and the overall city and work to improve city conditions for everyone.
Despite this, the vacancy of District 12 has not imposed significant additional responsibilities on the jobs of other alders, Heck said.
“It’s been a little bit of extra work for a few of us without having an alder in that district, particularly with regard to evaluating development proposals that are in District 12,” Heck said. “Otherwise, it hasn’t had much of an impact.”
Heck also said that alders, including council president Keith Furman of District 19, are monitoring the District 12 email to ensure that constituents’ needs and complaints are heard.
The Council will review applications but may not choose anyone to fill the vacancy ahead of the spring elections, according to the Madison General Ordinance, which explains the alternate selection process.
