Panel’s work will take time

Published 1:00 am Wednesday, March 27, 2013

By Mike Voss

The committee appointed by the Beaufort County Board of Commissioners to explore options to the limited-voting method of electing commissioners is taking its time in carrying out its task.

That’s how it should be. The panel will need to produce an alternate way to elect commissioners that allows minorities to elect who they want to represent them and allow voters to vote for more than just one candidate during an election in which commissioners are elected — and that passes muster with the federal government.

That’s not an easy task.

Since 1991, Beaufort County voters have used limited voting to elect commissioners. The method was imposed on the county by an order from a federal judge. The judge issued the order to enforce an agreement between county leaders and a group of black residents concerning the system of electing commissioners.

Some voters don’t like limited voting, which limits voters to voting for only one candidate in each election for county commissioners. Many of those voters say if there are seven seats on the board they should be able to vote for seven candidates.

The committee faces a daunting task. From what we’ve seen of its work so far, we believe it will find an option that will work.

About Mike Voss

Mike Voss is the contributing editor at the Washington Daily News. He has a daughter and four grandchildren. Except for nearly six years he worked at the Free Lance-Star in Fredericksburg, Va., in the early to mid-1990s, he has been at the Daily News since April 1986.
Journalism awards:
• Pulitzer Prize for Meritorious Public Service, 1990.
• Society of Professional Journalists: Sigma Delta Chi Award, Bronze Medallion.
• Associated Press Managing Editors’ Public Service Award.
• Investigative Reporters & Editors’ Award.
• North Carolina Press Association, First Place, Public Service Award, 1989.
• North Carolina Press Association, Second Place, Investigative Reporting, 1990.
All those were for the articles he and Betty Gray wrote about the city’s contaminated water system in 1989-1990.
• North Carolina Press Association, First Place, Investigative Reporting, 1991.
• North Carolina Press Association, Third Place, General News Reporting, 2005.
• North Carolina Press Association, Second Place, Lighter Columns, 2006.
Recently learned he will receive another award.
• North Carolina Press Association, First Place, Lighter Columns, 2010.
4. Lectured at or served on seminar panels at journalism schools at UNC-Chapel Hill, University of Maryland, Columbia University, Mary Washington University and Francis Marion University.

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