{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nTonya D. McDaniel is the incumbent Democratic Forsyth County Commissioner for District A, first elected in 2018; her current term runs through December 2026 [1]. Four Democrats -- McDaniel, Kimberly Hinton-Robinson, Natasha Smith, and fellow incumbent commissioner Malishai \"Mali\" Woodbury -- ran in the March 3, 2026 Democratic primary for the district's two seats [3]. McDaniel and Woodbury were the top two finishers and are the Democratic nominees on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot for District A, facing Republican Contessa Smith, per the NC State Board of Elections' official primary results and candidate filing records [2][3].\n\n## Background and education\nMcDaniel was raised in a military family with ties to Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and is a Winston-Salem native. She earned a B.A. in political science with a minor in public administration from Winston-Salem State University and a Master of Public Administration from North Carolina Central University in 2016 [1]. She is the godchild of the late Earline Parmon, a former Forsyth County commissioner and state legislator [1].\n\n## Career\nAs a commissioner, McDaniel has focused on equity in property-tax rates and county funding for schools within District A [1]. She has served on the North Carolina State Health Coordinating Council after being appointed by Governor Roy Cooper, and on the National Association of Counties' Veterans & Military Services Committee and the Forsyth County Home & Community Block Grant Advisory Council [1]. She holds leadership roles with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County NAACP chapter, the Forsyth County African American Caucus, and Zeta Phi Beta sorority [1].\n\n## Family\nMcDaniel has three children and three grandchildren [1].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Tonya D. McDaniel -- Forsyth County Board of Commissioners](https://www.co.forsyth.nc.us/Commissioners/meet_mcdaniel.aspx) -- accessed 2026-07-21\n\n[2] [March 3, 2026 primary official precinct-level results -- NC State Board of Elections](https://s3.amazonaws.com/dl.ncsbe.gov/ENRS/2026_03_03/results_precinct_sort/FORSYTH_PRECINCT_SORT.txt) -- accessed 2026-07-21\n\n[3] [2026 Candidate Filing List -- NC State Board of Elections](https://s3.amazonaws.com/dl.ncsbe.gov/Elections/2026/Candidate%20Filing/Candidate_Listing_2026.csv) -- accessed 2026-07-21","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_a","county":"forsyth","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Forsyth County Board Of Commissioners District A"},{"contest":"county_commission_district_a","county":"forsyth","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Forsyth County Board Of Commissioners District A"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Tonya","fullname":"Tonya Denise Mcdaniel","lastname":"Mcdaniel","middlename":"Denise","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_a","contest_title":"Forsyth County Board Of Commissioners District A","county":"forsyth","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":"forsyth","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"DEM","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},{"contest":"county_commission_district_a","contest_title":"Forsyth County Board Of Commissioners District A","county":"forsyth","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"forsyth","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"DEM","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":"forsyth","cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"county_commission_district_a","contest_title":"Forsyth County Board Of Commissioners District A","county":"forsyth","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"forsyth","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"DEM","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},"party":"DEM","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"summary":"Tonya D. McDaniel, Democratic incumbent for Forsyth County Board of Commissioners District\u202fA, seeks re\u2011election in 2026 after serving since 2018.","terms":[],"token":"1e031f8e8504c5f8"}