One of the three candidates for the position of Grand Traverse County administrator has withdrawn himself from consideration, prompting the county to invite a new candidate from the applicant pool to take his place. 

Peru Utilities General Manager Joe Pandy notified executive search firm GovHR USA he was withdrawing from the interview process, according to firm Vice President Jaymes Vettraino. A reason for Pandy's withdrawal was not provided. In a memo to County Commission Chair Carol Crawford Monday, Vettraino said he reviewed the candidate pool and selected another applicant to take Pandy's place in the interview process. The selected candidate is Vicki Uppal, the county administrator of Washington County in Missisippi.

According to Uppal's resume, she's served as Washington County's administrator since March 2015. She was previously a senior financial analyst and assistant to the chief financial officer at TI Automotive in Auburn Hills from 2011 to 2014 and worked at Troy's Delphi Corporation for 13 years, including as a program business manager and sales account manager. She has a Bachelor of Science in organization administration from Central Michigan University and an MBA from the University of Michigan.

The other two candidates set to be interviewed are former Camp Grayling Garrison Commander Colonel Thomas Perison and Oak Park City Manager Erik Tungate. All three candidates will be publicly interviewed at a special county commission meeting Wednesday, July 19 at 5pm at the Governmental Center.