Mike Altizer and Butch Church switch their seats and nameplates during the last chairman switch in 2010

The balance of power in Roanoke County has shifted again.

Two years after Catawba Supervisor Butch Church built an alliance with Ed Elswick and Charlotte Moore than won him the chairman’s seat, the board reversed course and elected Hollins Supervisor Richard Flora as the new chair.

The decision reflects a topsy-turvy county board: Both incumbents were re-elected last fall, but the working relationship between the five supervisors has continued to flux.

Church nominated Moore for the job, but she declined.

Flora would seem to be a safe, temporary choice, as he said he plans to retire from government at the end of his term, about two years from now.

What do you think? What does this mean for county governance?