Brett Cornelius leaving Marion City Council, moving out of state

Marion City Councilman Brett Cornelius has announced that he is moving out of state to pursue a new ministry opportunity and will resign from council sometime in June.

Cornelius, who is the pastor of Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Marion, posted an announcement about his decision on his Facebook page on Sunday, then told his fellow city council members about the proposed move during Monday's meeting. He said he anticipates making the move to become pastor of a church in Illinois in late June.

Following is the announcement Cornelius posted to his Facebook page on Sunday: "I announced to the saints at Gethsemane this morning that I am taking the call to Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Vandalia, Illinois. It is heartbreaking to leave my church family here, but I know Christ's promise to be with His church till the end of the age is given for times just like this. I have labored here for 25 years here, first as a church planter then as pastor. I will still be here til early June. I am hopeful about the new field of ministry in Illinois. Please keep Gethsemane Lutheran, Holy Cross Lutheran, and my family in your prayers as we all begin this new phase of life."

Cornelius, a Republican, was elected to Marion City Council in November 2021, during a campaign that saw GOP candidates win six of the nine seats on council. He is one of three at-large members of council along with fellow Republican Aaron Rollins and Democrat Mike Thomas. He said he has enjoyed his time serving on city council.

"It took me a while to kind of get a handle on how the city works and what the issues were in the city that were really important to people," Cornelius said. "I've had a good time doing it. I've enjoyed myself. I've enjoyed thinking about the needs of the community. It's been enlightening. I think I would've enjoyed staying on council for more than one term. My regret is that I waited so long to take the initiative to run for city council."

Cornelius has been one of the driving forces behind a movement to make Marion a charter city. He chairs city council's charter select committee, which was unsuccessful in its attempt last year to rally support for the idea. He said he wants to advance a proposed charter ordinance out of the committee prior to resigning from city council.

"I would like to get (the charter ordinance) voted out of committee next month. In all likelihood, I'm not going to be around for any council votes, but if it's out of committee and the (Republican Party) has some time to replace me, then they can consider whether that's a priority for them," he said. "But I'm going to take it as far as I can take. It's something I really wanted and it's something I think is good for Marion. But I know I won't be able to see all the way through now."

After meeting just once since October 2022 − it's most recent meeting was on April 17, 2023 − the committee does not have any more meetings scheduled. The same charter ordinance presented to city council last year was back on the agenda at the April 17 meeting with no action taken on it.

Councilman Mike Thomas, a Democrat, is the vice chair of the charter committee. He is also a staunch opponent of Marion becoming a charter city. Cornelius said he fears the idea will not be advanced with Thomas taking over leadership of the committee.

"Once I leave, it will be a four-person committee (two Democrats, two Republicans) and easily divided, but pretty much, I think, unless (the Marion County Republican Party) replaces me fairly quickly, the committee itself will be gone," Cornelius said.

In addition to Cornelius and Thomas, the other members of the charter committee are Jeff Gerritsen, 1st Ward; Mike Neff, 6th Ward; and Aaron Rollins, At-large. Gerritsen is a Democrat while Neff and Rollins are Republicans.

The Marion County Republican Party Central Committee now has the task of finding a replacement for Cornelius. Chairman Ken Stiverson told the Star that Cornelius informed him about his decision to leave Marion on Monday. Stiverson said the GOP central committee has begun the work of seeking a replacement for Cornelius.

Prior to contacting Stiverson on Monday, Cornelius said has hasn't much interaction with local GOP leadership during the 16 months he's been in office.

Cornelius will be the second member of Marion City Council to resign from office during this term, which commenced Jan. 1, 2022, and will end Dec. 31 2023. Councilman Kai Meade, 1st Ward, resigned last July because his family purchased a house outside of city limits, thus making him ineligible to hold office.

Email: ecarter@gannett.com | Twitter: @AndrewACCarter

This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Brett Cornelius leaving city council, moving out of state