City of Richmond offers candidate registrar position

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- A candidate has reportedly been selected by the City of Richmond for its registrar position following Keith Balmer's resignation, which was prompted by an investigation that revealed fraud and misuse of city funds among other wrongdoings.

Starlet Stevens, chair of Richmond's Electoral Board, informed 8News on Tuesday, May 6, that a person was selected for the registrar position two weeks ago.

While they are not revealing the individual's identity at this stage, Stevens said they have extensive experience in elections and were chosen out of 39 applications from across the country.

The candidate has yet to accept the position, but if they do, they will be taking over for the interim registrar, Tina Crump, starting July 1, according to officials.

Balmer's resignation came after an investigation indicated he had violated multiple city policies, ultimately costing taxpayers around $500,000 -- which he explained to 8News as the result of "poor training."

Additionally, it came to light at the end of last year that Balmer was allowed to spend city money while the investigation was ongoing -- even after several allegations of misusing funds.

The city recently placed a pause on employees' ability to spend city money in an effort to improve transparency and accountability.