Halifax County board elects Dwayne Grouse chair, Jay Jones vice chair

Dwayne Grouse was elected chair of the Halifax County Board of Supervisors in an 8–0 roll-call vote at the board’s annual organizational meeting on Feb. 17, 2026. The board later confirmed Jay Jones as vice chair by the same margin.

The nominations came during the board’s opening organizational business. A board member nominated Grouse from the floor; after nominations were closed the clerk called the roll. Commissioners Hughes, Grawls, Pierce, Jennings, Watts, Beard, Wimbush and Smith Magdalene recorded 'Yes,' and the chair declared the motion passed 8 to 0.

After the chair vote, the board opened nominations for vice chair and a member nominated Jay Jones. That nomination was brought to a close, put to a vote and carried 8 to 0. The board then confirmed its 2026 meeting schedule and recessed until 6:30 p.m.

The chair congratulated the newly elected officers and handed over the gavel. The organizational meeting procedures followed the board’s standard annual practice of electing leadership and setting the coming year’s schedule; no substantive policy decisions were made during the organizational portion of the session.

Next procedural steps noted by the board included publishing the confirmed meeting calendar and continuing the joint agenda items with the planning commission when the bodies reconvened later that evening.