A former Metro councilman and current head of the Nashville chapter of the NAACP wants the city’s mayoral election to be held in May instead of August, according to a lawsuit.
Ludye Wallace filed the lawsuit in chancery court on Monday, challenging the Davidson County Election Commission’s decision to hold the mayoral election in August.
The need for a special election was created after former Mayor Megan Barry resigned last week. She took a plea deal on theft charges resulting from her two year-long extramarital affair with her head of security, Rob Forrest – who also pleaded guilty to theft.
On Friday, commission members voted 3-2 to hold the election in May instead of August. Opponents argued at the time that a lawsuit against Metro was certain to follow.
The suit argued that the vote is invalid because it violated the Metro Charter and state law. Wallace also wants the election to be held sooner because he “lacks the money to run a campaign for the multiple additional months… required to campaign."
Read the full lawsuit here.
