2021 Georgia Code
Title 15 - Courts
Chapter 9 - Probate Courts
Article 1 - General Provisions
§ 15-9-11. Special Election to Fill Vacancy; Term of Individual Elected

1. When a vacancy occurs in the office of judge of the probate court in any county, it shall be the duty of the individual who assumes the duties of the judge, as provided in Code Section 15-9-10, within ten days after the vacancy occurs, to order a special election for the purpose of filling the vacancy. The election superintendent shall give notice of the special election by publication in the newspaper in which the citations of the judge of the probate court are published. The special election shall be held in accordance with Chapter 2 of Title 21.
2. Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this Code section, if the vacancy occurs after January 1 in the last year of the term of office of the judge of probate court, the individual assuming the duties of the judge of the probate court shall be commissioned for and shall serve the remainder of the unexpired term of office.
3. If a special election is held, the individual elected to fill the vacancy shall be commissioned for the unexpired term.

(Ga. L. 1851-52, p. 50, § 1; Ga. L. 1851-52, p. 91, § 13; Code 1863, §§ 298, 299; Code 1868, §§ 358, 359; Ga. L. 1871-72, p. 28, § 1; Code 1873, §§ 323, 324; Code 1882, §§ 323, 324; Civil Code 1895, §§ 4224, 4225; Civil Code 1910, §§ 4782, 4783; Code 1933, §§ 24-1707, 24-1708; Ga. L. 1951, p. 129, § 1; Ga. L. 1969, p. 290, § 1; Ga. L. 2009, p. 827, § 3/HB 495; Ga. L. 2018, p. 356, § 1-11/SB 436.)

The 2018 amendment, effective July 1, 2018, substituted "individual" for "person" in the first sentence of subsection (a) and in the middle of subsection (b); substituted "The election superintendent" for "He or she" at the beginning of the second sentence of subsection (a); designated the fourth sentence of subsection (a) as subsection (b), and, in subsection (b), substituted "subsection (a) of this Code section" for "the provisions of this subsection" near the middle; redesignated former subsection (b) as present subsection (c), and, in subsection (c), substituted "If a special election is held, the individual" for "The person" at the beginning.

- Filling of vacancies in public office generally, § 45-5-1 et seq.

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Plurality of votes decides election.

- Providing for the calling of an election to fill a vacancy in the office of ordinary (now probate judge), a plurality of votes would decide such election. 1952-53 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 354.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

Am. Jur. 2d.

- 46 Am. Jur. 2d, Judges, §§ 29 et seq., 232 et seq.

- 48A C.J.S., Judges, §§ 37, 40, 41.