Edgerton Acknowledges Possibility of a Replacement

Menifee City Council member Wallace Edgerton Wednesday night gave the strongest indication yet that it might be necessary to consider the method for replacing him should his serious health issues continue.

Edgerton, 81, made his comments during the Menifee City Council meeting via telephone from a hotel in San Diego, where he stays on Wednesday nights after undergoing weekly treatments for health issues related to a lung transplant in 2011. He hasn't personally attended a council meeting this calendar year, although he has insisted on participating via telephone whenever possible.

Wednesday night, he acknowledged that "my health issues are up in the air" and that "at some point, the council will want to discuss the issue of elections vs. appointments."

Edgerton, Menifee's first mayor and a council member since the city's incorporation in 2008, is serving a term that runs through November 2016. Edgerton said that although he maintains a positive attitude, rigorous medical treatments since his most recent surgery in January have taken their toll.

When asked Wednesday by council member Matt Liesemeyer whether he was considering resigning, Edgerton left the issue open but was honest in his answer.

"Not now," he said. "My options of getting better are still there. But at some point, a decision will have to be made. Right now, there are a few unanswered questions. When those are answered, either I'll be back with the council or I'll sit down with them and we'll have a discussion.

"I won't leave you hanging forever."

If a sitting council member resigns or otherwise vacates a council seat, the council has the option of setting an election to choose a replacement or beginning the process of appointing a replacement. In 2011, Sue Kristjansson was chosen from among a group of residents interviewed and was appointed to the council after the death of Fred Twyman.