Poll shows support for term limits in consolidated government proposal

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – On Monday, the government consolidation Charter Commission announced the results of one of the first polls conducted on the Commission’s work.

Results from the poll show that voters in Montgomery County and Clarksville overwhelmingly approve of term limits for elected officials within a potential new consolidated government, which is a measure that was recently approved for the newly proposed government’s charter.

According to the poll, 81 percent of voters approved of adding term limits while 19 percent did not.

Currently, Montgomery County elected officials can run for office indefinitely.

“We’re very excited to see such widespread support for the work that the Charter Commission is accomplishing,” Charter Commission member Charlie Foust said in a press release. “Our goal is to write a charter that will appeal to the broadest number of people to ensure that our community is put on the right path to protect what makes it special, better prepare for and manage inevitable growth, and end the redundancies and waste of having two competing governments rather than one streamlined government. The Commission believes term limits, are in the best interest of the citizens of Montgomery County and we’re glad to see such strong support throughout the community for it.”

The polls are intended to meet the Charter Commission’s legal obligation to inform citizens about the inner workings of what a consolidated government would look like and gives citizens the opportunity to provide input on the completed portions of the Charter before final approval in July.

As charter articles are approved by the commission, one way citizens are given the opportunity to provide input is via polling.

“Allowing voters an opportunity to voice their opinions on how their new government will operate is very important and not something that was done in previous attempts at government consolidation,” Foust said. “The members of the Charter Commission are committed to writing the best Charter possible and that requires public input from citizens and understanding what they believe is the right path forward to secure the integrity of their community.”

Surveying likely registered voters, the poll was conducted from March 8 – March 19 with a total of 893 individual respondents and a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.