- JB
- John Pellicciotti
John Pellicciotti, who since mid-January has been the interim Shelby County Commissioner in District 4, Position 3, will seek election this year as a full-time commissioner from District 4, Position 1, the seat being vacated for term-limits reasons by current commission chair Joyce Avery.
Why the change from one District 4 seat to another?, Pellicciotti was asked. “Because I promised the commission and the other people who sought the interim position that I would not seek it on a permanent basis,” Pellicciotti said.
No such vow applied to Position 1, which is also being sought by current Probate Court clerk Chris Thomas. Pellicciotti is quite aware that a confrontation between himself and Thomas in this year’s Republican primary would likely be a hard-fought and closely observed race. Pellicciotti offered no criticism of Thomas but suggested, without elaborating, that there were possible philosophical differences between the two.
Pellicciotti, who works as a high-tech consultant and as a restorer of vintage automobiles, had sought several elected positions before winning out over a crowded field of applicants for the District 4, Position 3 seat. At least two of Pellicciotti’s unsuccessful rivals — Terry Roland and George Chism — are actively seeking the Position 3 seat in this year’s election.
On the commission, Pellicciotti has kept a generally low profile but has not been reticent about offering solutions to issues before the legislative body. He authored the text of a compromise resolution allowing county employees to volunteer for Haiti relief missions that was narrowly defeated.
Pellicciotti says that very shortly he will offer proposals for resolving the county’s current budgetary problems through work-force economies.
