SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Former mayor Tamara Wallace resigned last night, and confirmed her resignation to the Tribune this morning. The city council will need to fill the open seat as soon as possible, as Wallace’s term would have ended in November 2026.

Given that Wallace resigned at 10:55 p.m. on Monday, the clock is ticking. According to city code, the council has 60 days from the stated date of resignation to either call for a special election or to fill the vacancy by appointment.

The next city council meeting, which will be on October 21, will be the first time for the city to discuss filling the vacant seat. The agenda will also include a report on the status of City operations.

The council will also need to reorganize to select a new mayor and mayor pro tempore (also called mayor pro tem), along with filling vacant outside board and commission seats.

With Wallace’s resignation, the following board and commission positions are vacant:

• California Tahoe Conservancy – Voting Board member
• El Dorado County City Selection Committee – Voting member
• El Dorado Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) – Voting member
• El Dorado Countywide Oversight Board – Voting member
• California Tahoe Emergency Services Operations Authority (Cal Tahoe JPA) – Voting member
• Clean Tahoe Program – Voting Board member
• Park Avenue Development Project Plaza Maintenance Association (PADMA) – Voting Board member 
• Tahoe Prosperity Center – Council Liaison 
• City Council Finance Subcommittee – Appointee

“Despite the recent changes in City Council leadership, city operations continue without disruption.” said City Manager Joe Irvin. “All City departments are fully operational and serving the community continues to be our top priority. To reiterate, City funds are carefully managed, properly accounted for, and verified with an independent financial audit conducted annually as required by state law (California Government Code Section 26909).”

Historically, the mayor pro tem position would step up to mayor, but Mayor Pro Tem Bass’s arrest has led to some public distrust. In Wallace’s own resignation letter, she urged for Bass to resign as well.

While a special election is an option, it’s one with a few caveats. A special election would take place 114 days after the call for it by city council, which would put the election sometime in February if they called for it at the nearest meeting. There would also be an increased cost to taxpayers for putting a special election on, as it would require more staffing and distribution of election materials.

Another option is that city council will appoint someone to fill the seat. These candidates would need to fill out an application and be interviewed by current councilmembers. After the interviews, the appointee would be sworn in and begin serving on the council immediately for the remainder of the term. After that, the appointee would need to be elected to city council.

Wallace’s term would have ended in November 2026, along with councilmember Scott Robbins and Bass’s terms. It’s highly likely that previous candidates who ran for city council may interview for a position if that’s the route council decides to take.

Either of these options are on the table, but will be discussed in further detail by city council during their next meeting.

Eli Ramos is a reporter for Tahoe Daily Tribune. They are part of the 2024–26 cohort of California Local News Fellows through UC Berkeley.