It was quite a busy Tuesday for Teri Anulewicz.
The Ward 3 Smyrna city council representative, first elected a decade ago, announced at Tuesday night’s meeting she is resigning her seat to run for District 42 Georgia State Representative.
“It is with mixed emotions I make this announcement I will be resigning at noon tomorrow, Wednesday Sept. 6,” Anulewicz said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Stacey Evans announced she was resigning from the District 42 seat to run for Georgia Governor, prompting a flurry of activity throughout the afternoon that led to Anulewicz’s announcement that night.
Anulewicz took the podium to explain the situation and thank everyone for their support during her time on the council.
“I hope I have proven myself as an able and effective representative for the citizens and residents of Ward 3,” she said. “I’ve made so many good friends, met so many incredible people. I’ve always said Ward 3 is truly the heart of Smyrna.”
Anulewicz also explained that she needed to resign quickly in order to get the special election set in November. Had she waited too long the election would be held in March, costing the city additional money and leaving Ward 3’s citizens without representation for several months.
Smyrna Mayor Max Bacon, city staff and other city council members all thanked her for hard work on behalf of the city since her first election in 2007.
“I told Teri upstairs how much I’ve appreciated working with her,” Bacon said. “I’ve seen her struggle with issues that are of importance to this city. She was doing maybe not the most popular thing, but she was doing the right thing. I’ll miss her, she’s Mayor Pro Tem and filled in for me during my absence a few months ago.”
A special election to fill both Evans’ District 42 seat and Anulewicz’s city council post will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Anyone wishing to run for the Ward 3 seat can qualify Sept. 18-20. The qualifying fee is $567, which is 3 percent of the gross salary of the position.
State Sen. Hunter Hill is also running for governor, meaning both of Smyrna’s representatives in the Georgia legislature will be replaced on election day.
