Katie Nicholson/Herald Staff Writer

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HALIFAX - James Pierce and Gene Minton have reached a deal on who will be the chairman of the Halifax County Board of Commissioners. But the details of the agreement and the election of a chairman is on hold until the first meeting of February.

The announcement of an end to two years of deadlocked votes came this morning during the board's organizational meeting which was continued from December.

This morning's meeting was moved to the historic courtroom due to the size of the crowd. Though today's meeting attracted a larger crowd than the last one, there was little disruption.

Gary Grant, executive director of Concerned Citizens of Tillery, approached the board, saying, “We don't trust you all.”

Pierce responded, “I hope you trust me,” adding he and Minton had engaged in a “productive conversation.”

“He's in agreement and I'm in agreement, and I'd appreciate it, with all due respect, if we could come to some sort of order and conduct this business,” he added.

Grant and Minton then exchanged some words, and Grant asked the commissioners if there would be a chairman as of next month, to which they responded, “Yes.”

Grant stepped down and two more people requested that the board come up with a chair as soon as possible. The board then proceeded with its regular meeting.

Acting chair Carolyn Johnson led the regular meeting, which lasted more than three hours. The meeting included business which was not addressed last month, when the regular meeting was prematurely recessed due to a protest of the board's indecision toward the chairmanship.