By Glenn Rolfe

SEAFORD — Pending resolution approval, Seaford council plans to deviate from city charter and move two Tuesday council meetings in September and November to Wednesdays to accommodate the Department of Elections’ use of city hall for the 2022 primary and general elections.

At its next meeting, April 26, council plans to act on the resolution that authorizes moving its meeting from Tuesday, Sept. 13 — the date for the primary election — to Wednesday, Sept. 14.

The request came from Sussex County Department of Elections Director Kenneth “Bo” McDowell.

While not yet requested by the Department of Elections, council, at the recommendation of City Manager Charles Anderson, opted to include in its resolution moving the Tuesday, Nov. 8, session to Wednesday, Nov. 9. The general election is Nov. 8.

“In the past, we have accommodated elections by setting up the polling/voting machines in the lobby. People come in, and vote. It does cause some confusion,” Mr. Anderson said. “Also, our building is open because we don’t close for election day as some schools do, and things of that nature.”

Council’s options were to reschedule the meeting date, cancel the meeting entirely or potentially bump the start time for the meeting from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“We do have a lot of business for council,” Mr. Anderson said. “I think best option would be to consider rescheduling.”