The mayor shall be the official head of the town government and shall preside at all meetings of the board of commissioners. Where there is an equal division upon any question, or in the appointment of officers, by the board, he shall determine the matter by his vote and he shall vote in no other case. The mayor shall exercise such powers and perform such duties as are or may be conferred upon him by the general laws of North Carolina, by this charter, and by the ordinances of the town. The board of commissioners shall choose one of its number to act as mayor pro tempore, and he shall perform the duties of the mayor in the mayor's absence or disability. The mayor pro tempore as such shall have no fixed term of office, but shall serve in such capacity at the pleasure of the remaining members of the board.
(Session Laws of 1965, Chapter 79 § 3.4)