DAPHNE, Alabama (GCN)— The Alabama Attorney General has issued an opinion regarding the selection of the next mayor after Bailey Yelding’s death on Jan. 22 left the seat empty.

At issue were two opposing statutes, one of which said that the empty seat should fall to the council president. The other stated that the council should elect someone from within their own membership to fill the vacancy.

The city possesses characteristics that triggered both statutes, being a class 8 municipality for one, and having a population greater than 12,000 for the other.

The AG opinion stated that the city should proceed using Section 11-44G-2 of the Code of Alabama, which states that the council should elect from within their own membership, or from among qualified electors in the municipality.

“It is the opinion of this Office that an absence in the position of the mayor in a class 7 or 8 municipality should be handled pursuant to section 11-44G-2 of the Code of Alabama,” the Jan. 31 opinion reads. “Additionally, section 11-44G-2 of the Code, adopted in 1997, is the more recently enacted statute. In cases of conflicting statutes on the same subject, the latest expression of the Legislature is the law.”

According to interim City Clerk Rebecca Hayes, the process of selecting the next mayor has been added to Monday’s council meeting agenda.

The Courier will update this article when a new mayor has been selected.