Rhode Island Statutes § 17-7-3 Appointment of members - vacancies

(a) The governor shall forthwith upon June 8, 1979 , appoint seven (7) members of initial terms as follows: one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of two (2) years; one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of four (4) years; one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of six (6) years; one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of eight (8) years; one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of ten (10) years; one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of twelve (12) years; one member upon initial appointment shall serve for a term of fourteen (14) years; and upon the expiration of the terms, the governor shall appoint persons for succeeding terms of fourteen (14) years, respectively. All members of the board appointed or reappointed after January 1, 2008, shall serve for terms of nine (9) years beginning in January 2008, and in January of every even numbered year thereafter, the chairperson and vice chairperson of the board shall be elected by majority vote of the members of the board.

(b) In the event a vacancy occurs in the office of chairperson or vice chairperson after January 1, 2008, the board shall in the manner provided in subsection [ 17-7-3 ] (a) elect another of its members to be chairperson or vice chairperson, to fill the vacancy; provided, if the vacancy occurs as a result of death or resignation, the new chairperson or vice chairperson shall only fill the unexpired term.

(c) In the event a vacancy occurs on the board, the governor shall appoint within thirty (30) days a new member to fill the vacancy; provided if the vacancy occurs as a result of death or resignation, the new member shall only fill the unexpired term. All appointments to fill vacancies shall be made in accordance with Article IX, section 5 of the Constitution of the state of Rhode Island and §§ 36-1-10 through 36-1-12 .

(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of § 17-7-2 and in order to facilitate communication between the department of state and the board of elections, the secretary of state shall designate a liaison (the director of elections or the deputy secretary of state who oversees the elections division) to serve as a reporting and informational resource at all board of elections meetings with the exception of when the board meets in executive session or is engaged in agenda items addressing issues related to campaign finance or appeal. The board may call upon the department of state liaison to offer insight or clarification, or answer any direct questions, through the chair, from members, in real time, at any time during a meeting, The board of elections shall make a platform available to the liaison to facilitate this process.