{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Dylan Castle","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"Dylan James Castle is the Republican candidate for one of the two seats on the Macon County Board of Commissioners representing District\u202f2 in the 2026 general election. The Board of Commissioners is the governing body for Macon County, North Carolina; each commissioner represents a geographic district and the two candidates receiving the most votes in the November general election win the seats\u202f[12]. The election is scheduled for November\u202f3,\u202f2026\u202f[6].\n\nMacon County is a rural county of about 37,000 residents with a median household income of $45,703 and a high school graduation rate of 89\u202f%\u202f[1]. District\u202f2 includes the town of Franklin and surrounding areas. The current commissioners, Gary Sheilds and Danny Antoine, are not seeking reelection, opening both seats to new candidates\u202f[12].\n\nIn the March\u202f2026 Republican primary, Castle emerged from a five\u2011candidate field, securing 25.75\u202f% of the vote, second only to Kellie Burns who earned 30.79\u202f%\u202f[12]. The other primary contenders were former Franklin Town Council Member David Culpepper (18.81\u202f%), Macon County Sheriff\u2019s Captain Nick Lofthouse (18.30\u202f%), and Danny Reitmeier (6.35\u202f%). By finishing in the top two, Castle advanced to the November general election, where he will face Democratic opponents Terry Bell and Janet Jacobs Greene for the two available seats\u202f[12].\n\nCastle\u2019s public record prior to the 2026 race is not detailed in the available sources, and no specific professional or educational background has been published. His campaign activity, as reflected in the primary results, demonstrates a base of support within the Republican electorate of District\u202f2. The general election will determine whether he joins the Macon County Board of Commissioners to help set policy, approve the county budget, and oversee local services for residents of his district.\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Macon County, North Carolina, elections, 2026 - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Macon_County,_North_Carolina,_elections,_2026)\n- [2] [North Carolina elections, 2026 - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/North_Carolina_elections,_2026)\n- [3] [United States House of Representatives elections in North Carolina, 2026 - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections_in_North_Carolina,_2026)\n- [5] [Candidate Lists | NCSBE](https://www.ncsbe.gov/results-data/candidate-lists)\n- [6] [Upcoming Election | NCSBE](https://www.ncsbe.gov/voting/upcoming-election)\n- [8] [2026 Election United States House - North Carolina - District 05 - FEC.gov](https://www.fec.gov/data/elections/house/NC/05/2026/)\n- [10] [2026 United States House of Representatives elections in North Carolina - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections_in_North_Carolina)\n- [11] [Candidate Profiles \u2013 NC Voter Guide](https://ncvoterguide.org/profiles/)\n- [12] [Burns, Castle advance to Macon Commission General Election](https://smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40974-burns-castle-advance-to-macon-commission-general-election)","firstname":"Dylan","lastname":"Castle","middlename":"James","suffix":null,"token":"184a9ef4360f91ac"},"token":"QpXhg2OuvybtPRfq"},{"candidatename":"David B. Culpepper","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, David Benjamin Culpepper is a registered voter in Macon County, North Carolina, registered since 2012 (14 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [1].\n\nThe voter file shows David Benjamin Culpepper's year of birth as 1978; 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 12 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 David Benjamin Culpepper can reach ballotproject.org with corrections or additions.\n\n**Update: Culpepper lost the March 3, 2026 Republican primary for Macon County Board of Commissioners District 02.** He placed third of five candidates with 2,011 votes; the top two vote-getters, Kellie McConnell Burns (3,287 votes) and Dylan Castle (2,751 votes), won the Republican nominations (this seat elects two commissioners). Culpepper will not appear on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot for this seat, per certified North Carolina State Board of Elections results [3].\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/)\n\n[3] North Carolina State Board of Elections, certified March 3, 2026 election results (`results_pct_20260303.txt`), https://s3.amazonaws.com/dl.ncsbe.gov/ENRS/2026_03_03/results_pct_20260303.zip \u2014 accessed 2026-07-24\n","firstname":"David","lastname":"Culpepper","middlename":"Benjamin","suffix":null,"token":"4066e2e0a65927c6"},"token":"FVPwLLndBAvYK6j-"},{"candidatename":"Kellie McConnell Burns","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, Kellie Mcconnell Burns is a registered voter in Macon County, North Carolina, registered since 1996 (30 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [1].\n\nThe voter file shows Kellie Mcconnell Burns'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 10 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 Kellie Mcconnell Burns 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":"Kellie","lastname":"Burns","middlename":"Mcconnell","suffix":null,"token":"c89b5c00ca0a63cc"},"token":"60aSX8lVjkFakztW"},{"candidatename":"Danny Reitmeier","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, Daniel Kenneth Reitmeier is a registered voter in Macon County, North Carolina, registered since 1996 (30 years), with party affiliation listed as Republican [1].\n\nThe voter file shows Daniel Kenneth Reitmeier's year of birth as 1966; 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 9 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 Daniel Kenneth Reitmeier can reach ballotproject.org with corrections or additions.\n\n**Update: Reitmeier (running on the ballot as \"Danny Reitmeier\") lost the March 3, 2026 Republican primary for Macon County Board of Commissioners District 02.** He placed last of five candidates with 678 votes; the top two vote-getters, Kellie McConnell Burns (3,287 votes) and Dylan Castle (2,751 votes), won the Republican nominations (this seat elects two commissioners). Reitmeier will not appear on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot for this seat, per certified North Carolina State Board of Elections results [3].\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/)\n\n[3] North Carolina State Board of Elections, certified March 3, 2026 election results (`results_pct_20260303.txt`), https://s3.amazonaws.com/dl.ncsbe.gov/ENRS/2026_03_03/results_pct_20260303.zip \u2014 accessed 2026-07-24\n","firstname":"Daniel","lastname":"Reitmeier","middlename":"Kenneth","suffix":null,"token":"0ab470f067f48f08"},"token":"tOhmKxqwH9d9d_-z"},{"candidatename":"Nick Lofthouse","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"REP","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nRaymond Nicholas Lofthouse, also known as Nick Lofthouse, ran as a Republican candidate for Macon County Board of Commissioners District 2 in the March 3, 2026 North Carolina Republican primary. The district is in western North Carolina.\n\nLofthouse has advocated for improved county communication infrastructure so residents can more easily access essential information about schools and county services. He supports maintaining a healthy county fund balance as evidence of fiscal responsibility, opposes hiring freezes as a long-term county staffing strategy, and has criticized deferring necessary expenses as a budget management practice.\n\n## Background and education\nHe grew up in the Echo Valley community in Macon County and was raised by his mother, Kate.\n\n## Career\nLofthouse serves as a Captain overseeing crime prevention operations at the Macon County Sheriff's Office (MCSO), drawing on his law enforcement experience in his campaign for county governance. He also owns a small printing business, giving him experience as both a public servant and a small business owner in Western North Carolina.\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Macon Republican Primary candidates address issues ahead of election day \u2013 Smoky Mountain News](https://smokymountainnews.com/news/item/40906-macon-republican-primary-candidates-address-issues-ahead-of-election-day)\n- [2] [Local Candidates \u2013 Macon County GOP](https://macongop.org/local-candidates)\n- [3] [Candidates \u2013 Macon County North Carolina](https://maconnc.org/Candidates.html)\n","firstname":"Raymond","lastname":"Lofthouse","middlename":"Nicholas","suffix":null,"token":"53bdb964b676dcd0"},"token":"j1_5czedBwf5VWYY"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"county_commissioner","o.office":"county_commission","office":"county_commission","officedescription":"A county commissioner is a member of the county's legislative body. The commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, authorizes borrowing, and passes county resolutions and ordinances. Commissioners are elected from districts (or at-large seats) to represent constituents on countywide policy.","officequalities":"- Policy judgment on countywide matters \u2014 budget, taxes, land use, services, and intergovernmental issues \u2014 within Tennessee county-government law.\n- Budget literacy: the commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, and authorizes multi-year bond issues.\n- Legislative process: drafting, amending, and voting on resolutions and ordinances; committee work that pre-screens items.\n- Constituent relations in the district \u2014 case-work and community issues flow through the commissioner's office.\n- Willingness to complete the state-required annual continuing education through UT CTAS.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"County Commissioner","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":2,"referendum":null,"source":null,"title":"Macon County Board Of Commissioners District 02"}