(a)(1) In the event of the absence or disability of the mayor in any Class 7 or Class 8 municipality, the functions of the office shall be exercised by the chair pro tempore of the city council and, during his or her absence or disability, by such person as the city council may appoint from its membership, which appointment shall be entered upon the minutes of the city council.
(2) In the event of a vacancy from any cause in the office of mayor, the city council shall fill the vacancy either from its own membership or from without the membership of the city council. The person elected by the city council to fill the vacancy in the office of mayor shall be a qualified elector in the municipality and shall meet all other legal qualifications required by law for the performance of the duties of the office to which elected.
(3)a. In the event a vacancy in the office of mayor is not filled within 60 days after it occurs in a Class 7 or Class 8 municipality, each existing city council member may submit a name to the Governor for appointment. If the Governor fails to make an appointment from any submitted names within 90 days after the vacancy occurs, the judge of probate shall call a special election to fill the vacancy.
b. In the event the Governor is unable or unwilling to make the appointment within the time period provided, he or she shall immediately notify the judge of probate of the county.
c. Any election called pursuant to this section shall be conducted pursuant to Chapter 46 of this title.
d. In the event more than one vacancy exists in the office of city council member or in the office of mayor, or both, all vacancies shall be filled in the same manner.
(4) In any election held pursuant to this subsection, only qualified electors who are residents of the municipality shall be eligible to vote and shall present proof of identification to the pollworkers before casting a vote. The identification may be in the form of a valid Alabama driver's license or some other form of identification that confirms a permanent address in the city where the vote is to be cast. Other forms of identification may include, but are not limited to, a credit card, birth certificate, food stamp card, Social Security card, check cashing card, library card, passport, school record, work identification record, school identification, certified copy of a marriage license, any form of governmentally-issued identification, or Medicaid, Medicare, or welfare identification.
(b) This section shall not apply to cities operating under commission form of government.
(c) This section shall not apply to Class 7 or 8 municipalities which have a population of 12,000 or more inhabitants according to the most recent federal decennial census. These municipalities shall fill vacancies in the office of mayor pursuant to subsection (a) of Section 11-43-42.