A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to provide that, beginning in 2024, members for the wake county board of commissioners shall be elected from electoral districts on a nonpartisan plurality basis.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Section 2 of Chapter 983 of the 1981 Session Laws reads as rewritten:
"Sec. 2. Wake County is divided into seven residence districts for elections to the Wake County Board of Commissioners. The districts shall be the districts as were adopted by the Wake County Board of Commissioners on November 1, 2021. Each member of the Wake County Board of Commissioners shall be elected to represent one single‑member district. The qualified voters of each district shall nominate candidates and elect members who reside in the district for the seat apportioned to that district."
SECTION 2.  Section 5 of Chapter 983 of the 1981 Session Laws reads as rewritten:
"Sec. 5. Election to the Wake County Board of Commissioners shall be on a nonpartisan basis at the time of the general election for county officers in even‑numbered years, and the results shall be determined by using the nonpartisan plurality method as provided in G.S. 163‑292. Candidates seeking office shall file their notices of candidacy with the board of elections no earlier than 12:00 noon on the first Friday in July and no later than 12:00 noon on the third Friday in July preceding the election. Except as otherwise provided by this act, elections shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 163 of the General Statutes. Vacancies shall be filled in accordance with law."
SECTION 3.  In 2024, and every four years thereafter, the candidates elected from Districts 4, 5, and 6 shall each serve a four‑year term. In 2026, and every four years thereafter, the candidates elected from Districts 1, 2, 3, and 7 shall each serve a four‑year term.
SECTION 4.(a)  Sections 3 and 4 of Chapter 983 of the 1981 Session Laws are repealed.
SECTION 4.(b)  S.L. 2015‑4 is repealed.
SECTION 5.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to elections held on or after that date.