{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\n\nJames Ricky Bullard, a longtime Columbus County Commissioner, ran for re-election to the Columbus County Board of Commissioners District 6 in the 2026 Republican primary. He lost the March 3, 2026 primary to Jeanne McPherson (53.8% to 42.23%) in the three-way race. Bullard had held his commissioner seat for nearly two decades.\n\n## Career\n\nBullard is a licensed North Carolina General Contractor, owner and manager of Cement Barn, and owner of Bullard's Meats in the Cerro Gordo area. He served on the Columbus County Board of Education from 1995 to 2008, on the Columbus County Board of Commissioners from 2008 to 2026, and on the Southeastern Community College Board of Trustees beginning in 2012.\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Bullard faces McPherson, Hinson for District 6 commissioner seat \u2013 NR Columbus](https://www.nrcolumbus.com/news/bullard-faces-mcpherson-hinson-for-district-6-commissioner-seat/article_52715ee8-7768-48e7-a40d-5374422776a5.html)\n- [2] [Columbus County Sheriff Wins Primary \u2013 Border Belt Independent](https://borderbelt.org/columbus-county-live-primary-election-results-2026/)","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_06","county":"columbus","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Columbus County Board Of Commissioners District 06"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"James","fullname":"James Ricky Bullard","lastname":"Bullard","middlename":"Ricky","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_06","contest_title":"Columbus County Board Of Commissioners District 06","county":"columbus","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"columbus","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":"columbus","cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"county_commission_district_06","contest_title":"Columbus County Board Of Commissioners District 06","county":"columbus","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"columbus","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},"party":"REP","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"terms":[],"token":"343c144ee5f28154"}