{"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":"8YWuAz0c_7KeYHd5"},{"candidatename":"Janet Jacobs Greene","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"DEM","person":{"biography":"According to the North Carolina voter file, Janet Jacobs Greene is a registered voter in Macon County, North Carolina, registered since 1971 (55 years), with party affiliation listed as Democratic [1].\n\nThe voter file shows Janet Jacobs Greene's year of birth as 1951; 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 Janet Jacobs Greene 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":"Janet","lastname":"Greene","middlename":"Jacobs","suffix":null,"token":"cf2496efde2fdc9a"},"token":"fhgyxJ9tJBXHK33W"},{"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":"jPbvfgTB6FaZp_mD"},{"candidatename":"Terry Bell","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"DEM","person":{"biography":"Terry Lee Bell is the Democratic candidate for the Macon County Board of Commissioners, District 02, in the November\u202f3,\u202f2026 election. The Board of Commissioners serves as the governing body for Macon County, responsible for setting policy, approving the county budget, and overseeing local services and infrastructure.\n\nA lifelong Macon County resident, Bell earned his associate degree from Southwestern Community College\u2019s Emergency Medical Technology program, which led to work as an emergency medical technician and volunteer firefighter in the county. He built a nearly five\u2011decade career in education, beginning as an instructor in Haywood and Macon County schools, then serving as principal at three schools and as assistant principal at Franklin High School. He retired in 2009 as Chief Operations Officer for the Macon County School System and later returned in a consulting capacity as Director of Human Resources, a role he held until his recent retirement.\n\nBell also contributed to county development as a project manager overseeing the construction of new schools and renovation of existing facilities. From 1995 to 2019 he served on the Southwestern Community College Board of Trustees, acting as chair for the final seven years of his tenure. In recognition of his extensive public service, Bell received North Carolina\u2019s Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the state\u2019s highest civilian honor, on March\u202f31 at the SCC Macon Campus\u301012\u3011.\n\nRunning for the Board of Commissioners, Bell emphasizes his deep roots in western North Carolina, his decades of experience in education and local government, and his commitment to continuing service for the residents of Macon County.\n\n## Sources\n- [12] [Former SCC Trustee receives state\u2019s highest honor | SOUTHWESTERN COMMUNITY COLLEGE](https://www.southwesterncc.edu/news/former-scc-trustee-receives-state%E2%80%99s-highest-honor)","firstname":"Terry","lastname":"Bell","middlename":"Lee","suffix":null,"token":"42ec1689d4a43296"},"token":"qbKWSir4so953gAt"}],"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"}