2014 Voter's Guide & Candidate List

Here is a quick guide to the upcoming elections as well as a candidates list for the primaries and general election - 130 candidates in all!

Voting Dates

The State Primary & County General election is on Aug.7, however early voting starts July 18 and goes through Aug. 2. The General Election is on Nov. 4, with early voting being Oct. 15 and going to Oct. 30.

ID Laws

Tennessee does have voter ID laws which help to protect the integrity of our democratic system. To vote you need to bring at least one of these forms of identification (they may be current OR expired):
TN driver's license;
TN Dept. of Safety photo ID;
TN gun carry permit with photo;
US military photo ID;
US passport;
Or, any other photo ID issued by the federal or Tennessee state government.

There are exemptions to this requirement:
If you are an absentee voter;
If you live in a nursing home or assisted living facility and vote at the facility;
If you are hospitalized at the time of voting;
If you have a religious objection to being photographed;
Or, if you are indigent and unable to obtain a photo ID without paying a fee (non-driving photo IDs cost $9.50 and are valid for 5 years).

You can obtain a free photo ID for the purposes of voting by visiting any county DMV or by calling 1-866-849-3548.
For additional election information you can call the TN Division of Elections at 1-877-850-4949.

Candidate List for the Aug. 7, 2014 Election

If available, I've linked each candidate's name with their campaign website or campaign Facebook page so you can learn more about them.

Primary Election Candidates
Governor:
Mark "Coonrippy" Brown (R)                              Charles V. Brown (D)
Bill Haslam (R)                                                Kennedy S. Johnson (D)
Basil Marceaux, Sr. (R)                                   William H. "John" McKamey (D)
Donald R. McFolin (R)                                      Ron Noonan (D)

US Senate:
Christian Agnew (R)                                       Terry Adams (D)
Lamar Alexander (R)                                      Gordon Ball (D)
Joe Carr (R)                                                   Larry Crim (D)
George S. Flinn (R)                                        Gary G. Davis (D)
John D. King (R)
Brenda S. Lenard (R)
Erin K. Magee (R)

US House of Representatives Dist. 4:
John Anderson (R)                                          Lenda Sherrell (D)
Scott DesJarlais (R)
Oluyomi "Fapas" Faparusi, Sr. (R)
Steve Lane (R)
David R. Tate (R)
Jim Tracy (R)
Michael S. Warden (R)

Tennessee State Senate Dist. 13: Bill Ketron (R)

Tennessee State House of Representatives 
Dist. 34:
Rick Womick (R)

Dist. 37:
Eddie Smotherman (R)
Dawn White (R)

Dist. 48:
Adam Coggin (R)                           William B. Campbell (D)
Rick Peppers (R)
Bryan Terry (R)

Dist: 49:
Mike Sparks (R)                            Mike Williams (D)
Robert Stevens (R)

Republican State Executive Committee (you may vote for one male candidate and one female candidate in your district)
Dist. 13 Committeeman: Tim Rudd    or    James Gann (write-in candidate)

Dist. 13 Committeewoman: Kelsey C. Ketron    or    Mishelle P. Perkins

Dist. 14 Committeeman: Lance Frizzell    or    Jim Sandman

Dist. 14 Committeewoman: Lynne Davis    or    JoAnne Skidmore

Democrat State Executive Committee (you may vote for one male candidate and one female candidate in your district)
Dist. 13 Committeeman: Darrell Bouldin    or    Tommy Bragg

Dist. 13 Committeewoman: Mary A. Eckels    or    Kimberli R. Jensen

Dist. 14 Committeeman: Mark F. Farrar

Dist. 14 Committeewoman: Brenda Abels    or    Joan G. Hill

County General Election

Circuit Court Judge Division I - 16th Judicial District: Jeffrey L. Peach (R)    or   Mark Rogers (I)

Circuit Court Judge Division II - 16th Judicial District: Nathan Nichols (R)   or    David Bragg (I)

Circuit Court Judge Division III - 16th Judicial District: Keith Siskin (R)

Circuit Court Judge Division IV - 16th Judicial District: Royce Taylor (I)

Chancellor - 16th Judicial District: Howard W. Wilson (R)

District Attorney General - 16th Judicial District: Jennings H. Jones (R)

Public Defender - 16th Judicial District: Gerald L. Melton (R)

General Sessions Judge - Part I: Kevin Hodges (R)   or   Ben H. McFarlin, Jr. (I)

General Sessions Judge - Part II: Barry Tidwell (R)   or   David Loughry (I)

General Sessions Judge - Part III: Toby Gilley (R)   or   Larry D. Brandon (D)

Juvenile Court Judge: Donna S. Davenport (R)

Sheriff:
Robert Arnold (R)
Bill Kennedy (D)
Dale Armour (I)
Jim R. Tramel (I)

Rutherford County Mayor: 
Ernest G. Burgess (R)
Heather A. Brown (I)
Teresa St. Clair (I)

County Commission
Dist. 1:                                                 Dist. 2:
Doug Shafer (R)                                    Steve Pearcy (R)

Dist. 3:                                                 Dist. 4:
Will P. Jordan (R)                                 Jon D. Jaques (R)
                                                           Jon Frazier (I)
                                                           Robert Peay (I)

Dist. 5:                                                 Dist. 6:
Carol Cook (R)                                     Joe F. Jernigan (R)

Dist 7:                                                  Dist. 8:
Michael D. Kusch (R)                            Edward Phillips (R)
                                                           Pettus L. Read (I)
                                                           Steve Spence (I)

Dist. 9:                                                 Dist. 10:
Joe A. Gourley (R)                                Brad Turner (R)

Dist. 11:                                               Dist. 12:
Rhonda Allen (R)                                  Robert Stevens (R)

Dist. 13:                                              Dist. 14:
Paul Johnson (R)                                 Charles Baum
Chris Deal (I)                                       Tony B. Gains (I)

Dist. 15:                                               Dist. 16:
David Nipper (R)                                   Phillip S. Dodd (R)
Tim Roediger (I)

Dist. 17:                                              Dist. 18:
Jeff Phillips (R)                                    Allen Mcadoo (R)

Dist. 19:                                              Dist. 20:
Shawn Kaplan (R)                                Trey Gooch (R)

Dist. 21:
Patsy L. Briley (R)
Chantho Sourinho (D)

County Trustee: Teb Batey

Circuit Court Clerk: Melissa Harrell (R)   or   Avent Lane (D)

County Clerk: Lisa D. Crowell  or   Pierrecia Lyons (D)

Register of Deeds: Heather Dawbarn

Rutherford County Road Board (non-partisan)
Zone 1: David Victory
Zone 2: Keith Bratcher
Zones 4: Dick Steagall

Rutherford County School Board (non-partisan)
Zone 3:
Veronica Buchanan
Howard Jones
Lisa W. Moore

Zone 4:
Wayne R. Blair
Eric Tuttobene

Zone 7:
Jody L. Bond
James C. Estes
Gabriel Fancher
Patrick McCarthy
Paul L. Peavy

Smyrna, Town Court Judge (non-partisan)
Lynn E. Alexander
Keta J. Barnes 
Jeremy Gourley
Cherie W. Meece
W. Alan Rose

Smyrna, Town Court Clerk (non-partisan)
Terry D. Davenport
Lisa K. R. Wagner



For more information please visit the Rutherford County Election Commission's website at http://www.rutherfordcountytn.gov/election/index.htm

So What is the GOP Round table?

Put simply, the GOP Round table is a weekly discussion group that is open to the public. Every Friday at 5 pm, at the Rutherford County Republican Party headquarters at 111 E. Main St. engaged citizens come together to talk about a host of issues that concern local and national politics.

The round table began in mid-2013 and has been going strong ever since. The host of each week's round table usually prepares several potential topics for discussion and then allows the free flow of ideas from the group. Sometimes we come up with real solutions and other times we simply talk about that week's major news stories. There have been three primary hosts, Jo Anne Skidmore, Andrew Anderson, and recently, your's truly, Jacob Bogle. We have also had several guest hosts. 

(From the left: Heather Dawbarn - Register of Deeds, Jim Tracy - TN Senator, Brian Patterson - City Council Candidate)

Within the context of the round table, participants are able to learn a great deal about local politics and can meet at least one current elected official or candidate for office. Over the months, by my count, there have been around three dozen elected officials and candidates appear at the round table, with four being nearly weekly attendants. Beyond office holders, business owners, political activists, students, and everyday citizens regularly attend.  

Conversation can vary greatly week-to-week, and for that matter, minute-to-minute. We have had discussions on city and county budgets, problems of corruption, red-light cameras, the national debt, the war on terror, civil liberties, drug legalization, the healthcare industry, education and much more. Everyone's input is desired and everyone's views are respected, however, debates do happen and they've always been great fun. Over the course of the evening we can also end up talking about local history, personal and family stories, international affairs, and from time to time the host may bring historical artifacts or foreign currency to complement that evening's conversation. The round table usually ends at 7 pm, but people are free to come and go as they please.    

The round table is also a great opportunity to network with others, make new friends, and get plugged in to a number of different causes - political and otherwise. So, if you enjoy serious, and not-so serious, conversation with a group of great individuals please stop by one Friday. There are snacks, and while it is hosted by the county GOP, it is open to the public. 

For more information:

http://www.RutherfordGOP.org  

Rutherford GOP Facebook