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AFTERNOON UPDATE
2009-09-02 / Front Page
School board vice-chairman
will seek county council seat
AFTERNOON UPDATE
School board vice-chairman
will seek county council seat
By SCOTT POWELL
Ledger Staff Writer
spowell@gaffneyledger.com
Ledger Staff Writer
spowell@gaffneyledger.com
Cherokee County School Board Vice-Chairman Donnie Lee Smith announced Wednesday he plans to run for the county council seat formerly held by longtime councilman James Batchler.
Batchler, 85, died last Thursday following a career in public service which spanned more than four decades. Batchler was elected to his 11th term on county council in 2006, making him the longest-serving Cherokee County councilman in history.
Smith is the first person to officially announce plans to run for the seat.
Smith said he has given a lot of thought in recent months about the possibility of running for county council. He has decided the time is right to seek a county council seat.
"My main concern in the county is jobs," Smith said. "We need to hold onto the industry we have. We need to do our best to draw more industry into the county."
Smith is presently in his third term on the school board. He won re-election to the school board in August of 2008. He was the school board chairman in 2007 and represents District 4 in Blacksburg on the school board.
Smith worked as a contractor for many years and helped oversee two multi-million dollar school building programs during his three terms on the school board. Semi-retired, Smith works as a project estimator for Hoke Construction in Shelby, N.C.
Smith will run for the council post while continuing to serve on the school board.
