A Shelby County attorney's opinion has confirmed that Mayor A C
Wharton will not have to step down in order to run in a special
election for Memphis mayor.
Wharton said earlier today that he doesn't intend to resign while campaigning, despite speculation that he would have to because of a provision in the county charter requiring that the county mayor "devote his full time to the performance of his duties...."
But a 2007 opinion by County Atty. Brian Kuhn said a sitting mayor can still campaign, so long as no campaign activities take place "during normal work hour."
Also, neither county property nor employees can be used for political purposes, unless employees volunteer their time off hour.
Kuhn wrote that only federally-funded officials are prohibited from campaigning for political office. The county mayor's salary is not federally funded
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