County Commissioners

Elaine Powell is serving her third term as a member of the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners. She was first elected as commissioner in 2018 by the people of District 1 in North Mecklenburg. Elaine previously served for five years as vice chair of the Board.

For the past 34 years, Powell has been actively engaged in our community. Her professional background is in clinical healthcare. She began volunteering in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) in 1989, starting out as a community partner at Eastway Middle School. On her days off, she continued to serve in a variety of roles in CMS from 1989-2014.

Powell is a long-time advocate for resident engagement, environmental stewardship, parks, recreation and public health. Commissioner Powell seeks out citizen voices and believes that it is important to consider multiple points of view as part of the decision-making process. She is eager to listen and work with others to meet the needs of the community.

Commissioner Powell has been appointed to multiple advisory bodies in Mecklenburg County Government since 2001. She began on the Mecklenburg County Waste Management Advisory Board, where she served from 2001-2009. Commissioner Powell served as the Chair of the Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation Commission (PRC), and the Chair of the Natural Resources Stewardship Advisory Council from 2010-2018.

Commissioner Powell is a proud graduate of the 2020 Advanced Leadership Corps at the University of North Carolina School of Government.