New Cabarrus County commissioner sworn in with little notice — or fanfare
_fitted.png)
Cabarrus County Clerk of Court Bill Baggs picked local attorney Jeffrey Jones for the county commission Tuesday afternoon, and quickly swore in the new commissioner following a month of uncertainty regarding the seat.
Jones, owner of the Jones Law Firm in Kannapolis, took the oath of office after Baggs received the authority to fill the seat vacated by North Carolina Sen. Chris Measmer. A judge previously granted a preliminary injunction blocking the commission’s first appointee, and the board failed to vote on an alternative. Baggs announced the appointment on Facebook, expressing confidence that Jones will serve the county well.
“I don’t know anything about him. Seems like nobody does,” Commissioner Kenny Wortman told The Charlotte Observer. “We’ll see what happens. There was an opportunity to go a different way and that didn’t happen.”
Jones was not among the 39 applicants who had applied for the seat. Under state law, Baggs was only required to appoint a registered Republican residing in Cabarrus County. It remains unclear why Jones was sworn in before the next scheduled commission meeting on April 19.
Prior to Measmer’s departure in April, the commission was often split 3–2 on contentious personnel decisions, including the firing of the former county manager and county attorney, and hiring their replacements. It’s uncertain whether Jones will align with Wortman and Commissioner Lynn Shue or with Commissioners Larry Pittman and Laura Lindsey.
Pittman, Lindsey, and Measmer had previously voted to appoint Lamarie Austin-Stripling, treasurer of the Cabarrus County Republican Party, to fill the seat. Wortman and Shue supported former commissioner Steve Morris, who did apply for the seat.
Jones could reveal his political leanings during the board’s April 19 vote to select a new chair.
This story was originally published May 13, 2025 at 5:05 PM.
