Some Hamilton County commissioners want to appoint Joan Carter, wife of the late Rep. Mike Carter, to fill the state representative’s seat until a special election.
The subject came up at Wednesday’s county commission meeting, which included a tribute to Mike Carter, who died of pancreatic cancer on May 15. Carter served the county directly as an attorney and judge and represented the area in the Tennessee General Assembly.
Commissioner Sabrena Smedley, R-Ooltewah, described Carter as her state representative and friend and said that he had “wisdom beyond his years.”
“Someone described him to me about a week ago as the smartest guy in the room, but you’d never know it. He was such a humble man,” she said, standing with his wife and two sons. “He was committed not only to his faith, but to his family.”
During the meeting, his last before a planned retirement, a tearful Commissioner Chester Bankston called Carter one of his best friends.