Winston-Salem Study Group Recommends 10-Member City Council

A Winston-Salem study group is recommending that the city change to a 10-member city council.

The Winston-Salem Local Governance Study Commission voted for the change on Wednesday. The recommendation calls for eight members to be elected by wards and two elected citywide.

The current council is made up of eight members, elected by ward.

According to a press release, council members would continue to be elected to four-year terms, with partisan elections held on even-numbered years. The mayor would be elected at large and only vote at council meetings to break a tie.

The commission was formed last May, with an original goal of having the recommendations in place before the start of the 2020 legislative session.

The suggestions will now be presented to Mayor Allen Joines and N.C. Representatives Donny Lambeth and Debra Conrad. They will also be sent on to the City Council, which by law is allowed to change any aspect of the city's election process except for the timing of council elections.