Voters could decide whether Hamilton County commissioners and the mayor need term limits this upcoming election cycle.
Commissioner Lee Helton, R-East Brainerd, announced during a Wednesday night meeting that he intends to file a resolution bringing the term limits issue to the county ballot, likely in November, he said. The language he plans to introduce would limit both commissioners and the county mayor to three terms, or 12 years, in office — cumulatively, not consecutively.
“I think every district in the county has a deep bench of people who want to be engaged,” Helton said in an interview after the meeting. “They have their own idea of things that need to happen or be changed in our county.”
The issue was first up for discussion in early 2025, when County Mayor Weston Wamp asked the commission to pass a resolution imposing a two-term limit on the mayor’s position specifically. The resolution would have also cemented the rule with a ballot measure.