{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nThomas Cleveland Koch was a nonpartisan candidate for the North Ward seat on the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners in the March 3, 2026 primary. He received 322 votes (16.8%), finishing behind incumbent Chad Hutchens (1,108 votes, 57.7%) and Wes Parker (489 votes, 25.5%), who advanced to the November general election [1].\n\n## Background and education\nKoch moved to Mount Airy in 1972. He earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Louisville, attending night classes while working full-time [2].\n\n## Career\nKoch served on the Mount Airy Board of Education from 1996 to 2004. He was subsequently elected to a North Ward seat on the Mount Airy City Council, serving from 2019 through 2024, when he declined to seek re-election. In 2026, he sought to return to the council by running for incumbent Hutchens' seat [2].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Primary 2026: Election night results \u2013 Mt. Airy News](https://www.mtairynews.com/news/primary-2026-election-night-results/article_cc91a573-b91c-4a2a-80ed-7e65a636791e.html)\n- [2] [Koch joins race for North Ward council seat \u2013 Mt. Airy News](https://www.mtairynews.com/news/local/koch-joins-race-for-north-ward-council-seat/article_f39690b7-5a75-5ae8-9963-75c8e16971ed.html)","campaigns":[{"contest":"mount_airy_city_council_north_ward","county":"surry","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"City Of Mount Airy Commissioner North Ward"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Thomas","fullname":"Thomas Cleveland Koch","lastname":"Koch","middlename":"Cleveland","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"mount_airy_city_council_north_ward","contest_title":"City Of Mount Airy Commissioner North Ward","county":"surry","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"surry","office_key":"city_council","office_title":"City Council Member","party":"","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":"surry","cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"mount_airy_city_council_north_ward","contest_title":"City Of Mount Airy Commissioner North Ward","county":"surry","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-03-03","office_county":"surry","office_key":"city_council","office_title":"City Council Member","party":"","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},"party":"","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"city_council","office_title":"City Council Member","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"terms":[],"token":"5da4e07ae3d342ef"}