{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nTerry Steven Johnson is the incumbent Alamance County Sheriff, seeking a seventh term in the 2026 election [1][2]. He was first elected in 2002, becoming the first Republican elected to the office in living memory in Alamance County [1][2]. The March 3, 2026 Republican primary was his first contested primary since taking office; Alamance News later reported he \"successfully fended off two rivals\" in that primary [4]. In his previous reelection, the 2022 general election, Johnson won with 58.8 percent of the vote against Democratic candidate Kelly White [1].\n\nJohnson has said his priorities include making Alamance County safer and improving diversity within the Sheriff's Department \"of gender, race and educational background\" [3]. He has proposed creating a mental health diversion center to redirect people repeatedly arrested for low-level offenses toward psychiatric evaluation rather than punishment, targeting a one-year timeline to establish it [3].\n\n## Background and education\nJohnson is a native of Snow Camp, North Carolina, born and raised in Alamance County [2]. His law enforcement career began in 1972 [3]. Before being elected sheriff, he spent nearly three decades as an agent with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation [2].\n\n## Career\nAs sheriff, Johnson's department has developed working relationships with the DEA, Homeland Security, and ICE, and began using drone technology for search-and-rescue operations in 2018 [1]. He has cited resolving cold cases ranging from grand theft auto to first-degree murder, expanding narcotics enforcement using his SBI drug-interdiction background, and implementing body cameras for patrol officers and jailers through a state grant [2].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Alamance County sheriff to seek 7th term \u2013 Elon News Network](https://www.elonnewsnetwork.com/article/2025/09/alamance-county-sheriff-to-seek-7th-term-faces-first-potential-opposition-in-gop-since-2002)\n[2] [Sheriff Terry Johnson to seek seventh term \u2013 Alamance News](https://alamancenews.com/sheriff-terry-johnson-to-seek-seventh-term/)\n[3] [Campaigning for Alamance County Sheriff: Terry Johnson \u2013 Elon News Network](https://www.elonnewsnetwork.com/article/2022/10/campaigning-for-alamance-county-sheriff-terry-johnson)\n[4] [Did sheriff strike fans of campaign rivals from his agency's list of certified officers? \u2013 Alamance News](https://alamancenews.com/did-sheriff-strike-fans-of-campaign-rivals-from-his-agencys-list-of-certified-officers/)","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_sheriff","county":"alamance","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Alamance County Sheriff"},{"contest":"county_sheriff","county":"alamance","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Alamance County Sheriff"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Terry","fullname":"Terry Steven Johnson","lastname":"Johnson","middlename":"Steven","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_sheriff","contest_title":"Alamance County Sheriff","county":"alamance","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":"alamance","office_key":"county_sheriff","office_title":"Sheriff","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},{"contest":"county_sheriff","contest_title":"Alamance County Sheriff","county":"alamance","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"alamance","office_key":"county_sheriff","office_title":"Sheriff","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":"alamance","cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"county_sheriff","contest_title":"Alamance County Sheriff","county":"alamance","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"alamance","office_key":"county_sheriff","office_title":"Sheriff","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},"party":"REP","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_sheriff","office_title":"Sheriff","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"summary":"Terry S. Johnson is the incumbent Republican Sheriff of Alamance County, North Carolina, seeking his seventh term in the 2026 election.","terms":[],"token":"2b400bf8e78796ab"}