{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Jeannie Gaddis","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nBillie \"Jeannie\" J Gaddis is the incumbent District 2 member of the Cherokee County Board of Education. She was narrowly defeated in the March 3, 2026 Republican primary by challenger David Ricks, who won 50.62% of the vote \u2014 a margin of about 57 votes. Gaddis will not appear on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot [1].\n\n## Background\nAccording to the North Carolina voter file, Gaddis is a registered voter in Cherokee County, North Carolina, registered since 1976 (50 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [2].\n\nThe voter file shows Gaddis's year of birth as 1946; NC publishes only the year of birth in its bulk voter export, so day and month are not part of the public record [2].\n\nThe voter history file shows 11 elections voted in since 2016, most recently the 2026-03-03 primary election [3].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Voters toss incumbents in Cherokee County elections \u2013 Cherokee Scout](https://www.cherokeescout.com/local-news/voters-toss-incumbent-cherokee-county-commissioners)\n[2] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)\n[3] North Carolina State Board of Elections voter history file (`ncvhis_Statewide`), published at [dl.ncsbe.gov](https://dl.ncsbe.gov/)","firstname":"Billie","lastname":"Gaddis","middlename":"J","suffix":null,"token":"b758d8f90806eff5"},"token":"nH6JModynextIpBi"},{"candidatename":"Shannon D. Raper","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nShannon Dutsch Raper is an incumbent District 3 (Hiwassee Dam) member of the Cherokee County Board of Education. She finished second behind fellow incumbent Jason Murphy in the March 3, 2026 Republican primary, with 31.24% of the vote in a three-candidate field. Both advance to the November 3, 2026 general election for the two available seats, where they face Democrat Joy Stein and unaffiliated candidate Carmen Owens Garland [1].\n\n## Background\nAccording to the North Carolina voter file, Raper is a registered voter in Cherokee County, North Carolina, registered since 1999 (27 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [2].\n\nThe voter file shows Raper's year of birth as 1977; NC publishes only the year of birth in its bulk voter export, so day and month are not part of the public record [2].\n\nThe voter history file shows 11 elections voted in since 2016, most recently the 2026-03-03 primary election [3].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Voters toss incumbents in Cherokee County elections \u2013 Cherokee Scout](https://www.cherokeescout.com/local-news/voters-toss-incumbent-cherokee-county-commissioners)\n[2] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)\n[3] North Carolina State Board of Elections voter history file (`ncvhis_Statewide`), published at [dl.ncsbe.gov](https://dl.ncsbe.gov/)","firstname":"Shannon","lastname":"Raper","middlename":"Dutsch","suffix":null,"token":"dc18b1b68bbf2e1f"},"token":"1Gxyk-pSZ1FMYmdf"},{"candidatename":"Jason Murphy","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nJason Ryan Murphy is an incumbent District 3 (Hiwassee Dam) member of the Cherokee County Board of Education. He led a three-candidate Republican primary field on March 3, 2026 with 44.32% of the vote, finishing ahead of fellow incumbent Shannon Raper (31.24%) and Gary Butler. Murphy and Raper both advance to the November 3, 2026 general election, which has two seats open; they face Democrat Joy Stein and unaffiliated candidate Carmen Owens Garland [1].\n\n## Background\nAccording to the North Carolina voter file, Murphy is a registered voter in Cherokee County, North Carolina, registered since 2006 (20 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [2].\n\nThe voter file shows Murphy's year of birth as 1988; NC publishes only the year of birth in its bulk voter export, so day and month are not part of the public record [2].\n\nThe voter history file shows 10 elections voted in since 2016, most recently the 2026-03-03 primary election [3].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Voters toss incumbents in Cherokee County elections \u2013 Cherokee Scout](https://www.cherokeescout.com/local-news/voters-toss-incumbent-cherokee-county-commissioners)\n[2] [North Carolina State Board of Elections \u2014 Voter Search](https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/)\n[3] North Carolina State Board of Elections voter history file (`ncvhis_Statewide`), published at [dl.ncsbe.gov](https://dl.ncsbe.gov/)","firstname":"Jason","lastname":"Murphy","middlename":"Ryan","suffix":null,"token":"6f7fa23a0f85a94d"},"token":"RnoTwaVi8QtHTIH-"},{"candidatename":"David Ricks","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\n\nDavid Eugene Ricks serves as a Code Enforcement Official for Cherokee County, North Carolina [2]. He is a candidate in the 2026 election for County School Board District I [1]. As of May 12, 2026, the outcome of this upcoming race remains unknown.\n\n## Career\n\nDavid Ricks serves as a Code Enforcement Official for Cherokee County, North Carolina [2]. He is employed by the county's Building Code Enforcement department, which is located at 911 Andrews Rd. in Murphy [6]. His professional contact information includes the phone number 828-837-6730, extension 2 [2].\n\n## Office history\n\nDavid Ricks serves as the Code Enforcement Official for Cherokee County [2]. The provided source material does not specify the date of his appointment or election to this role, nor does it detail the length of his current term or specific district boundaries beyond the county level.\n\nAvailable sources do not contain information regarding any other elected or appointed offices held by David Ricks, nor do they document any prior electoral races he has run in, whether successful or unsuccessful [3] [4] [5].\n\n## Sources\n[1] (source #2 not in master list)\n[2] [Staff Directory \u2022 David Ricks](https://www.cherokeecounty-nc.gov/directory.aspx?EID=7)\n[3] [David Ricks, North Carolina (35 matches): Phone Number, Email, Address - Spokeo](https://www.spokeo.com/David-Ricks/North-Carolina)\n[4] [David Ricks, North Carolina - NC | Found at 100 Locations | BeenVerified](https://www.beenverified.com/people/david-ricks/nc/)\n[5] [David Ricks in North Carolina - NC | 28 Records Available - YellowBook](https://www.yellowbook.com/people/david-ricks/north-carolina/)\n[6] [Staff Directory \u2022 Building Code Enforcement](https://www.cherokeecounty-nc.gov/directory.aspx?did=6)","firstname":"David","lastname":"Ricks","middlename":"Eugene","suffix":null,"token":"9981e9508073cd77"},"token":"rMmFzxCW1Fud4xGi"},{"candidatename":"Gary Butler","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nGary Bernard Butler is a candidate for Cherokee County Board Of Education District Ii in Cherokee County, North Carolina in the 2026 election cycle. The North Carolina primary is scheduled for March 3, 2026, with the general election on November 3, 2026.\n\nNo additional biographical information is currently available for this candidate. Voters seeking more information are encouraged to contact local news sources, the county Board of Elections, or the candidate's campaign directly.\n","firstname":"Gary","lastname":"Butler","middlename":"Bernard","suffix":null,"token":"0c999f7d4e24067d"},"token":"shpzinOP5X4Dv3o5"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"school_board","o.office":"county_school_board","office":"county_school_board","officedescription":"A school board member serves on the elected body that governs a public school district. The board sets district policy and budget priorities and hires and evaluates the superintendent, while leaving day-to-day management to the administration.","officequalities":"- Policy judgment for a public school district \u2014 setting direction while leaving day-to-day management to the superintendent.\n- Budget literacy for operating and capital budgets, in coordination with the county commission (which appropriates) and the state.\n- Ability to hire, evaluate, and when necessary replace the superintendent \u2014 the board's highest-stakes recurring decision.\n- Constituent relations with parents, teachers, principals, and community members.\n- Willingness to complete the state-required annual training through the Tennessee School Boards Association.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"County School Board Member","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":null,"title":"Cherokee County Board Of Education District Ii"}