Clarksville, TN – The Clarksville City Council will choose a new Council member for Ward 2 when it convenes for this purpose in February.
Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts, after discussions with the City Clerk and City Attorney and a review of the City Charter and Codes, outlined the steps the City Council will take to fill the vacancy.
“The Charter is specific in how we must go about filling the interim vacancies, so we look forward to the process unfolding over the coming weeks,” Mayor Pitts said. “I’m sure there are some qualified citizens in Ward 2 who will be interested in applying for this appointment.”
Ward 2 Councilman Deanna McLaughlin submitted her resignation effective January 10th, 2026.
The City Charter states that the City Council shall fill a Council vacancy by a majority vote of the entire Council. The appointed member will serve until the next Ward 2 Council member is selected in the regularly-scheduled November 2026 City Election, and subsequently sworn into office in early 2027.
Qualifications
Candidates applying to fill a vacancy on the City Council must be qualified in accordance with the Clarksville City Charter and general state law. A City Councilman must be a resident of the City of Clarksville; be at least 18; have resided in the City for 12 months; and reside in and be qualified to vote in the ward to which they seek appointment.
Application Process
The City Clerk will publish a notice of the specific vacancy. Within 60 days of the vacancy, all qualified applicants must appear before the Council at a regularly-scheduled meeting – which, in this case, will be set for February 5th, 2026 – to make known their intention to apply to fill the vacancy.
Applicants interested in applying to serve as the representative for City Council Ward 2 are asked to submit their name, address, contact information, and resume to Lisa Canfield, City Clerk, 1 Public Square, Clarksville, TN 37040, or email to: lisa.canfield@cityofclarksville.com no later than Monday, February 2nd, 2026.
Applicants may make a brief statement to the City Council at the meeting about their desire to serve on the Council — including their background, education, training, employment, military service, volunteer work, and other matters appropriate to an evaluation of their application — and they may answer questions from Council members.
Within 14 days of that meeting, City Code requires a special meeting of the Council for the purpose of appointing an applicant to fill the vacancy.
That special session is scheduled for Wednesday, February 11th, at 4:30pm.
Only those applicants who appear at the February 5th meeting and make known their intention to apply to fill the vacancy may be considered at the special-called meeting.
Voting Procedures
The successor for the open Ward seat will be appointed upon receiving a majority vote of the entire membership of the Council. If no applicant receives a majority vote or more of the City Council during the first vote, then a second round of voting will take place.
Subsequent voting rounds, including run-off votes to eliminate the lowest vote-getters if necessary, will be conducted until an applicant receives a majority vote. Upon approval and appointment by the City Council, the applicant will immediately be sworn in by the Mayor and take their seat, holding office until the winner of the next General Election is sworn into office.
