Smithfield Town Councilman-elect Bill Harris was sworn in at the Isle of Wight County Courthouse on Nov. 18 ahead of the council’s 3 p.m. committee meetings.

Harris ran unopposed for the two-year remainder of ex-Councilman Wayne Hall’s term after he resigned last year. State law allows special election winners to take office as soon as the election results are certified.

Smithfield received certified results from Isle of Wight County’s Electoral Board on Nov. 14. 

Harris succeeds Councilman Jim Collins, whom the council had appointed in Hall’s place last December. Collins finished fourth in a five-way race for three available four-year terms.

First-time candidates Mary Ellen Bebermeyer and Darren Cutler and incumbent Mike Smith won the three available four-year terms and will be seated on or after Jan. 1.

Citizens for Responsible Leadership, a Smithfield-based political action committee with the stated goal of “ensuring that development is managed responsibly,” endorsed Bebermeyer, Cutler, Harris and Smith. The four had campaigned on reining in growth and development.

Editor’s note: This story was updated on Nov. 18 with a photo of Harris’s swearing-in.