District 5 has a new councilwoman as Wanda Moultry was sworn in on Tuesday morning to fill the vacant seat on the Troy City Council.

“I want to thank the council for having faith in me,” Moultry said at the swearing in.

She also called for unity within District 5 so that she and residents can work to make improvements to the district and the city.

Moultry finished just 23 votes behind the late Dejerilyn King Henderson in the municipal election for the seat in August. Henderson passed away just two weeks later, leaving it up to the city council to appoint a new representative.

The previous council chose to leave the seat vacant for the remainder of their term, and the new council chose to appoint Moultry to the seat at their first council meeting. “I can say as someone who knows Ms. Moultry, the council did what they should have done after a close election,” Reeves said.

The appointment closes the book on some District 5 residents’ attempts to have a special election held to fill the vacancy. The newly filled council will meet on Tuesday, November 22, at 4 p.m. upstairs in City Hall for a work session, followed by their regular city council meeting at 5 p.m. in the council chambers.