{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nTonet Griggs is the incumbent Hardeman County Clerk and the Democratic Party nominee for re-election in the August 6, 2026 county general election, facing Republican nominee John Vickers [1][2].\n\n## Office history and career\nGriggs was elected Hardeman County Clerk in August 2022 and previously worked as a deputy clerk in the office for 18 years [3].\n\n## Documented disputes and controversies\nIn September 2025, the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury reported that Griggs had unlawfully charged couples a $60 fee to officiate weddings at the clerk's office. Investigators found she collected approximately $13,140 from at least 219 marriage ceremonies between September 2022 and July 2024, which represented about 56% of all couples obtaining marriage licenses in the county during that period [4][5]. Tennessee law allows county clerks to accept voluntary gratuities for performing ceremonies but prohibits charging a fee; the Comptroller stated that Griggs \"gave applicants no choice in paying her $60 officiating fee,\" and reported that she acknowledged being aware of and trained on the applicable law [4]. Griggs reimbursed the full $13,140 to the county's general trust fund in September 2025 [4].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Hardeman County Election Commission \u2014 Your Elected Officials](https://www.hardemanvotes.com/p/your-elected-officials.html) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-22\n[2] [Hardeman County Election Commission \u2014 August 6, 2026 Official Sample Ballot](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AhunmX4xEaSVTC0sXKimbLDC-E1NLTxH/view) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-22\n[3] [Tonet Griggs \u2014 County Clerk (UT CTAS)](https://www.ctas.tennessee.edu/official/tonet-griggs) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-22\n[4] [Investigation reveals county clerk charged at least 219 couples an illegal 'officiating fee' (Action News 5)](https://www.actionnews5.com/2025/09/18/investigation-reveals-that-county-clerk-charged-least-219-couples-an-illegal-officiating-fee/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-22\n[5] [Comptroller: Hardeman Co. clerk charged unlawful fees for officiating weddings (WREG)](https://wreg.com/news/mid-south/comptroller-hardeman-co-clerk-charged-unlawful-fees-for-officiating-weddings/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-22","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_clerk","county":"Hardeman","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Thu, 06 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"primary","state":"TN","title":"County Clerk"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Tonet","fullname":"Tonet Griggs","lastname":"Griggs","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_clerk","contest_title":"County Clerk","county":"Hardeman","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-08-06","office_county":null,"office_key":"county_clerk","office_title":null,"party":"D","pgr":"primary","state":"TN"}],"county":null,"cycles":[{"general":null,"party":"D","primary":{"contest":"county_clerk","contest_title":"County Clerk","county":"Hardeman","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-08-06","office_county":null,"office_key":"county_clerk","office_title":null,"party":"D","pgr":"primary","state":"TN"},"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_clerk","office_title":"County Clerk","state":"TN","terms":[]}],"summary":"Incumbent Hardeman County Clerk seeking re-election; repaid $13,140 after a 2025 state finding of unlawful wedding-officiating fees.","terms":[],"token":"2nmYcoRmeY"}