As Cobb Is Elected Mayor, Roanoke City Council Is Poised To Appoint a New Member

If Joe Cobb’s 59-vote win over David Bowers for Roanoke mayor survives any recount, City Council will be looking for a new member to join its ranks.

Cobb is two years into a four-year Council term, so his potential swearing in as mayor in January will prompt a vacancy that Council is likely to fill with an appointment in the near term.

Some Council candidates, and outgoing Council members, have not ruled out throwing their hat in the ring.

Bowers, meanwhile, has gone radio silent since the final vote tally last Wednesday in the mayor’s race; he did not respond to phone calls, emails and a text message for this story.

Bowers still has until Monday to petition a court for a taxpayer-funded recount, though an analysis of recounts across the country shows it would be a tall order to change the outcome.

Data on local elections is sparse, but out of 6,929 statewide general elections between 2000 and 2023, 36 recounts took place, according to FairVote, a nonpartisan advocacy group. Of those 36 recounts, three resulted in the initial outcome changing. Those three each had an initial margin of less than 0.06 percentage points. Cobb holds a 0.15 point lead over Bowers.

“I don't think it's fully sunk in yet, to be honest,” Cobb said Monday about his win, which the electoral board certified last week. Cobb, a Democrat, said he had not spoken with Bowers, a Republican, since the election.

“It's such an extraordinary honor, something that I certainly didn't imagine 23 years ago” when he moved to Roanoke, said Cobb, who will become the city’s first openly gay mayor. “I think it's representative of our city and how our city has grown, and how we celebrate being a welcoming, diverse, inclusive city.”

Cobb will also be joined by an openly gay vice mayor, Terry McGuire, a Democrat who earned that honorary title by garnering the most votes for City Council. Democrat Phazhon Nash will be likely the youngest Council member ever elected, according to former mayor and Roanoke historian Nelson Harris, and Nick Hagen will be the first Republican on Council in two decades.

Cobb said it will be up to the new Council to decide how to fill his vacant Council seat.

Council members could make a short-term appointment in advance of a special election or appoint someone to fill the term through the end of 2026.

“I think for a two-year vacancy, it makes some sense to provide some continuity,” Cobb said, “whether that's someone who's had previous service on Council, or somebody who is well connected within the community who's maybe interested in a two-year term.”

Independent Evelyn Powers, the city’s former treasurer, placed fourth for a Council seat, coming 1,258 votes behind Hagen.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” Powers said Tuesday about seeking a potential Council vacancy. “I’m going to wait and see what they decide to do and how they handle it.”

Councilwoman Trish White-Boyd said with a possible recount looming in the mayoral election, she could not yet say whether she would apply for any Council vacancy.

“I'm not really sure at this time. I haven't given it any thought,” White-Boyd said Monday. “You know, the only— one reason I didn't run [for Council] is because I had just come out of that Senate race, and it was back to back.” (Last year, White-Boyd ran unsuccessfully against state Sen. David Suetterlein, R-Roanoke County.)

Councilwoman Stephanie Moon Reynolds — who gave up reelection to Council in her unsuccessful bid as an independent for mayor — also said Monday she had not decided on competing for the post.

“I will not rule that out,” Moon Reynolds said, citing her 42 years of experience in the city clerk’s office and one term on Council. “When looking what’s on the Council, there is no expertise. … Whether I apply or not, I hope that’s something they take into consideration. I offer that.”

Benjamin Woods, one of the Democratic nominees for Council, said he would be unlikely to apply for any Council vacancy.

“I think it should be Evelyn if she wants it,” Woods said.

Cathy Reynolds, an independent who placed last out of seven Council candidates, put herself down as a “maybe” for the vacancy, while Republican Jim Garrett, who came in fifth, said in a text message, “To be honest I haven’t given it much thought because the likelihood of Joe Cobb supporting my selection is very slim.”

Hagen said if Cobb’s mayoral win holds he looks forward to seeing who comes forward for a Council vacancy.

“This is something that should be an open process, we should have interviews, the public should be aware of who all is running,” Hagen said. “My whole thing was, ‘Hey, transparency is important.’”

In his last public communique, Bowers said he was consulting his legal team of Mel Williams, Aaron Houchens and Charlie Nave before making further comment. Nave, chairman of the Roanoke City Republican Committee, did not respond to messages.

“Election Day should be Election Day!” Bowers said in his statement last Wednesday. “The current process, taking a week to figure out, does nothing but instill suspicion and doubt among voters in the integrity and surety of our elections.”

Nick Ocampo, the city’s voter registrar and director of elections, said Tuesday morning that he had not been made aware of any request for a recount in the mayor’s race. Ocampo said in a statement last week that his office is prepared to support that process.

“90 days into this role, I have been inspired by our election officials’ dedication to administering an honest, fair and secure election despite increased scrutiny and heightened pressure,” Ocampo said.