{"biography":"John Allen Shearl is the incumbent Republican commissioner for Macon County Board of Commissioners District\u202f1 and is seeking re\u2011election in the 2026 general election held on November\u202f3,\u202f2026. He first won the District\u202f1 seat in the November\u202f8,\u202f2022 general election and has served on the board since then, participating in budget, capital\u2011improvement and personnel decisions for the county [1][4][10].\n\nShearl grew up in Franklin, North Carolina, and graduated from Franklin High School. He is a licensed North Carolina contractor and the founder of Shearl Produce, Inc., a family\u2011owned business in Otto that he has operated for more than three decades. He also owns J&J Lawn Service and Home Maintenance in Highlands. In addition to his business career, Shearl served as a Highlands firefighter and medical responder, and later retired from the Highlands Fire Department. He has been a member of the Macon County Planning Board and coached baseball at Highlands High School, earning the school\u2019s \u201cService to the School\u201d award [4].\n\nDuring his first term on the commission, Shearl emphasized low taxes, property\u2011rights protection, and fiscal restraint. He opposed a proposed grading\u2011license requirement for land\u2011disturbing activities, arguing it infringed on private property rights, and he voted against the county\u2019s premium\u2011pay plan for employees, questioning the legality of using ARPA funds for that purpose [8][10]. He has also spoken about the pending tax revaluation, capital\u2011improvement projects, and the need for high\u2011speed internet access in the county, promising to scrutinize expenditures and, when appropriate, place major projects before voters via referenda [5][12].\n\nShearl\u2019s personal life includes his wife Lila Munger Shearl, three sons\u2014Allen, Michael, and Jared\u2014and several grandchildren. He lists his email as JOHN.SHEARL@MACONNC.ORG and his phone number as (828)\u202f342\u20116289, both provided by the Macon County GOP site [4].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [John Shearl (Macon County Board of Commissioners District 1, North Carolina, candidate 2022) - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/John_Shearl_(Macon_County_Board_of_Commissioners_District_1,_North_Carolina,_candidate_2022))\n- [4] [Macon County Info \u2014 Macon County GOP](https://macongop.org/macon-county-info)\n- [5] [Seven running for Commissioner seats, pt. 1 | The Highlander, Highlands, North Carolina](https://www.highlandsnews.com/regional-news/seven-running-commissioner-seats-pt-1)\n- [7] [Candidate Profiles: Macon County Commissioners District I - The Southern Scoop](https://thesouthernscoopnews.com/latest-news/candidate-profiles-macon-county-commissioners-district-i)\n- [8] [Republicans vie for Macon commissioner seat](https://smokymountainnews.com/archives/item/24674-republicans-vie-for-macon-commissioner-seat)\n- [9] [John shearl](https://smokymountainnews.com/news/itemlist/tag/John%20shearl)\n- [10] [Mayhem in Macon](https://smokymountainnews.com/news/item/36817-mayhem-in-macon)\n- [12] [Macon commission candidates address issues facing county](https://smokymountainnews.com/archives/item/34302-macon-commission-candidates-address-issues-facing-county)","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_01","county":"macon","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Macon County Board Of Commissioners District 01"},{"contest":"county_commission_district_01","county":"macon","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Macon County Board Of Commissioners District 01"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"John","fullname":"John Allen Shearl","lastname":"Shearl","middlename":"Allen","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_01","contest_title":"Macon County Board Of Commissioners District 01","county":"macon","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":"macon","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},{"contest":"county_commission_district_01","contest_title":"Macon County Board Of Commissioners District 01","county":"macon","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"macon","office_key":"county_commission","office_title":"County Commissioner","party":"REP","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":"macon","cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"county_commission_district_01","contest_title":"Macon County Board Of Commissioners District 01","county":"macon","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"macon","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":[]}],"summary":"John Allen Shearl is the incumbent Republican commissioner for Macon County District\u202f1, running for re\u2011election in 2026.","terms":[],"token":"53c1ba6684a23d01"}