{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Jim McVicker","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"James McVicker is the incumbent Sheriff of Bladen County, North Carolina, and is seeking a fourth term as the Republican candidate in the 2026 election for Bladen County Sheriff. He has served as sheriff since first winning the office in 2014 and was re\u2011elected in 2018, 2022, and again in 2022 for a third term, most recently defeating Democratic challenger Hakeem Brown by 6,507\u20115,216 votes [6].\n\nMcVicker is a native of Bladen County. He began his law\u2011enforcement career with the Lumberton Police Department before joining the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, from which he retired in 2001. After retirement he taught law\u2011enforcement training courses and then ran for sheriff, winning his first term in 2014 [6][7].\n\nBefore becoming sheriff, McVicker accumulated roughly 45 years of law\u2011enforcement experience, including service as a state trooper and as a police officer. As sheriff, he has emphasized school safety, promising to maintain school resource officers and to have deputies regularly visit schools and churches. He also participates in statewide law\u2011enforcement collaborations, attending the North Carolina Sheriffs\u2019 Association Annual Business Conference in 2024, where he highlighted the importance of networking and training among sheriffs [11].\n\nMcVicker\u2019s tenure has been marked by both community initiatives and controversy. Campaign\u2011finance records reveal that his 2014 and 2018 re\u2011election campaigns paid the Red Dome Group and political operative McCrae Dowless for \u201cget\u2011out\u2011the\u2011vote\u201d services, with payments of $8,000 to Red Dome and $8,800 to Dowless in 2018, and similar payments in 2014. These payments have been cited in investigations into alleged ballot\u2011harvesting and absentee\u2011ballot irregularities in Bladen County, leading to subpoenas from the North Carolina State Board of Elections and testimony alleging that Dowless was paid to procure absentee ballots on behalf of McVicker\u2019s campaign [8][10].\n\nDespite the investigations, McVicker has not publicly commented on the allegations, and the 2022 election results were not contested. He continues to serve as sheriff, overseeing the county\u2019s law\u2011enforcement operations, jail, and civil\u2011process duties, while campaigning for re\u2011election in the 2026 race.\n\n## Sources\n- [6] [McVicker re-elected as Bladen County Sheriff](https://www.wect.com/2022/11/01/mcvicker-brown-face-off-again-2022-election-bladen-county-sheriff/)\n- [7] [McVicker wins Bladen County sheriff\u2019s race](https://www.wect.com/2018/11/07/mcvicker-wins-bladen-county-sheriffs-race/)\n- [8] [Bladen County sheriff\u2019s connection to Red Dome, Dowless predates first term](https://www.wect.com/2018/12/11/bladen-county-sheriffs-connection-red-dome-dowless-predates-first-term/)\n- [10] [McVicker campaign paid man connected to alleged NC ballot harvesting operation](https://www.wect.com/2018/12/12/mcvicker-campaign-paid-man-connected-alleged-ballot-harvesting-operation/)\n- [11] [Sheriff McVicker attends NC Sheriffs\u2019 Association Annual Business Conference | Bladen Journal](https://www.bladenjournal.com/news/71616/sheriff-mcvicker-attends-nc-sheriffs-association-annual-business-conference)","firstname":"James","lastname":"Mcvicker","middlename":"Atlas","suffix":null,"token":"0c096ce7b33e67b9"},"token":"GRr5W1O37uW8SXog"},{"candidatename":"Carl Yonge","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, Carl Milton Yonge JR is a registered voter in Bladen County, North Carolina, registered since 2021 (5 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [1].\n\nThe voter file shows Carl Milton Yonge JR's year of birth as 1976; NC publishes only the year of birth in its bulk voter export, so day and month are not part of the public record [1].\n\nThe voter history file shows 6 elections voted in since 2016, most recently the 2026-03-03 primary election [2].\n\nThis summary draws only from the public North Carolina voter registration and history records. No additional published biographical information was located. Voters with personal knowledge of Carl Milton Yonge JR can reach ballotproject.org with corrections or additions.\n\n## Sources\n[1] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)\n\n[2] North Carolina State Board of Elections voter history file (`ncvhis_Statewide`), published at [dl.ncsbe.gov](https://dl.ncsbe.gov/)","firstname":"Carl","lastname":"Yonge","middlename":"Milton","suffix":"JR","token":"94e27157e66c8f49"},"token":"7h2jV94g7G25jF5D"},{"candidatename":"Gary Edwards","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"DEM","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nGary Scott Edwards, of Bladenboro, ran as a Democratic candidate for Bladen County Sheriff in the March 3, 2026 primary but lost to Talmadge \"Chris\" Hunt, who won with 68.94% of the vote to Edwards's 31.06%. As the losing primary candidate, Edwards will not appear on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot [1].\n\n## Career\nEdwards previously worked as a deputy with the Bladen County Sheriff's Office and ran for Bladen County Sheriff in the 2018 Democratic primary against Hakeem Brown [2].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Two Bladen County School Board Members Are Out; Longtime Sheriff Wins Primary \u2013 Border Belt Independent](https://borderbelt.org/bladen-county-live-primary-election-results-2026/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19\n- [2] [Meet the four candidates for Bladen County sheriff \u2013 WECT](https://www.wect.com/story/38110563/meet-the-four-candidates-for-bladen-county-sheriff/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-19","firstname":"Gary","lastname":"Edwards","middlename":"Scott","suffix":null,"token":"2bad896d50dcd412"},"token":"gV_8Ltfm5wWvGtPm"},{"candidatename":"Chris Hunt","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"DEM","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, Talmadge Christopher Hunt is a registered voter in Bladen County, North Carolina, registered since 1998 (28 years), with party affiliation listed as Democratic [1].\n\nThe voter file shows Talmadge Christopher Hunt's year of birth as 1963; NC publishes only the year of birth in its bulk voter export, so day and month are not part of the public record [1].\n\nThe voter history file shows 6 elections voted in since 2016, most recently the 2026-03-03 primary election [2].\n\nThis summary draws only from the public North Carolina voter registration and history records. No additional published biographical information was located. Voters with personal knowledge of Talmadge Christopher Hunt can reach ballotproject.org with corrections or additions.\n\n## Sources\n[1] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)\n\n[2] North Carolina State Board of Elections voter history file (`ncvhis_Statewide`), published at [dl.ncsbe.gov](https://dl.ncsbe.gov/)","firstname":"Talmadge","lastname":"Hunt","middlename":"Christopher","suffix":null,"token":"940dd4328554751a"},"token":"Cio9tvmp7B3Wjie7"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"sheriff","o.office":"county_sheriff","office":"county_sheriff","officedescription":"The sheriff is the county's chief law-enforcement officer. The office operates the county jail, provides court security, serves civil process and executes warrants, and provides patrol and investigation \u2014 a large operational command with a substantial budget.","officequalities":"- Organizational leadership of a sheriff's office spanning patrol, investigations, court services, and the county jail.\n- Oversight of the county jail, including intake, inmate health, and release procedures.\n- Working knowledge of Tennessee criminal law, court process, and constitutional search-and-seizure standards.\n- Ability to develop and oversee the office's operating budget with public accountability.\n- Coordination with municipal police departments and neighboring-county and state agencies.\n- A documented law-enforcement or public-safety background.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"Sheriff","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":null,"title":"Bladen County Sheriff"}