RIDGECREST — The people of Ridgecrest will likely have to wait through most of the year before they can choose a new mayor.

That’s because, by the time the village’s board of aldermen appointed Alderman Kevin Graham interim mayor Jan. 2, it was too late for the Secretary of State’s Office to place the election on the April municipal ballot, Village Clerk Dana Delaughter said.

That also means that Graham’s alderman seat will also remain open until an election can be decided.

After the April primary municipal ballot and a May general election, there is an open primary on the calendar for Oct. 17.

The October date is when the new election will likely take place, Delaughter said.

Graham’s appointment followed the resignation of former Mayor Michael Roberts in mid-December.

Roberts resigned the position because he had moved from the community of approximately 800 residents to Natchez.

Since 2000, three succeeding mayors of Ridgecrest have resigned.

Roberts was initially appointed and then elected to fill the seat after outgoing mayor Guy Lain left the position in 2006 to take a job with the state.

Lain was also appointed and elected following the resignation of former mayor David Cobb.

The compensation for mayor of Ridgecrest is $300 a month.

Graham could not be reached for comment.