The Dukes County Commission voted without dissent on Wednesday to name Russell Smith, the longtime legislative liaison to outgoing state representative Eric T. Turkington, as the permanent full-time county manager.

Mr. Smith was hired in April to fill the vacant county manager position as a subcontractor on a part-time basis. With the unanimous vote this week, the county has its first full-time manager since E. Winn Davis left the post in August of 2007.

Commission chairman Leslie Leland said yesterday that Mr. Smith’s salary will be $60,000 for the remainder of the fiscal year. County commissioners will then negotiate a new contract with Mr. Smith sometime next year, he said.

Mr. Smith will continue to work under the terms of the contract executed in April which contained a provision allowing him to be promoted to full-time county manager provided he received positive performance evaluations.

Mr. Leland said evaluations for Mr. Smith gathered in recent weeks have been almost universally positive.

“We talked with department heads, town managers, officials from the Wampanoag tribe — all sorts of people that the county manager has had dealings with. And the feedback made it clear we had the right person. Mr. Smith is a great listener and consensus builder,” he said.

A letter from the commissioners to Mr. Smith dated Dec. 17 said he met or exceeded the required job skills.

“Outstanding among your strengths are your work ethic and example of rolling up your sleeves to get things done, your communication skills in listening and keeping everyone informed, and your cooperation and teamwork. The tone you have set is a respectful, positive, problem-solving and collaborative one that seeks to be accountable to all our constituencies,” the letter said.

The letter also outlines goals and priorities for the county manager through the end of the fiscal year, including exploring revenue enhancement for the county budget, improving interaction with towns and continued efforts to enhance regional services.

Mr. Smith was in Boston yesterday and unavailable for comment. He will continue as legislative liaison until Jan. 7 when newly elected state representative Tim Madden takes office. Mr. Smith over the years has worked as a civil engineer, regional health agent and town selectman in Aquinnah. His family also goes back 13 generations on the Vineyard.

Mr. Leland said his experience has already proved to be valuable.

“When problems are presented he confronts them directly,” he said.