Lifelong resident of Richmond County and Richmond Senior High School Class of 1979 graduate Connie Kelly has been the director of Elections in Richmond County since 1995.
Upon graduating from RSHS, Kelly immediately entered the workforce as a lease clerk for a textile motor freight company. She also spent five years each with Coca-Cola Bottling in sales and in accounting with Georgia/ Pacific Southern.
Although she says her biggest regret is not pursuing higher education, Kelly’s perceived deficit did not stop her from achieving professional success, as she has been a consistent leader in organizing and overseeing elections in the county for the past 27 years.
Kelly’s career with the Board of Elections began in 1993 when she was hired as the deputy director. She became the director in 1995 and was certified as elections administrator in 1998.
In her position, she oversees nearly 100 bipartisan precinct officials, who work in precincts across the county during early voting and on election day. Kelly accredits her success as the elections administrator to the commitment and honesty of these dedicated officials, who she says she is fortunate to call friends. Kelly and the precinct officials serve under a five-member bipartisan board, that is committed to fair and honest elections.
During Kelly’s tenure, she has navigated the organization through numerous changes from state legislators in the election law. The National Voter Registration Act, commonly referred to as the “motor voter law,” restructured the means by which residents could register to vote by allowing voters to register and vote at DMV offices. The next reformation in N.C. was the No Excuse One-Stop Absentee voting and in 2000, “early voting” emerged.
Throughout the many changes in our voting system over the years, Kelly has been the one consistent glue that has held our voting system together and up-to-date.
She has been married to her husband Steve for almost 40 years and they share three daughters, two sons-in-law, and four grandchildren, whom she absolutely adores. In raising their daughters, Kelly did not want her daughters to have the same regret of not obtaining post-secondary education and instilled the importance of college.
Kelly is an active member of Cartledge Creek Baptist, where she serves on several committees. She also enjoys spending as much time as possible with her family.
Join us today in celebrating Kelly’s career of dedicated service to the voting system in Richmond County.
Meghann Lambeth is executive director of the Richmond County Tourism Development Authority. Republished from visitrichmondcounty.com. Throughout March, Visit Richmond County will feature a local leading lady in honor of Women’s History Month.
