{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nEric Scott is an independent candidate for Sheriff of Hancock County, Tennessee, on the August 6, 2026 county-general ballot. He announced his independent candidacy in October 2025, campaigning on transparency, accountability, and applying the law equally without political favoritism [1][2].\n\n## Background and education\nScott describes an early orientation toward service as a Cub Scout and high-school peer counselor. He joined the U.S. Army Reserves, trained as a Combat Medic and Behavioral Science Specialist, and served during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm in the Gulf War [1].\n\n## Career\nScott served as a law-enforcement officer with the Anne Arundel County Police Department in Maryland, progressing from patrol officer to detective to patrol supervisor, and holding specialty roles including Director of In-Service and Specialized Training and assignments in narcotics, missing-persons investigation, and the police training academy before retiring [1]. After relocating to Hancock County, he founded Protect 1 Firearms Training and Security Assessments in 2017, providing handgun-permit classes and active-shooter training to schools, churches, and medical facilities in Tennessee and Kentucky [1]. He joined the Hancock County Sheriff's Office in 2018 as Training Officer and Grants Coordinator, and says he has written $4 million in grants for the agency to fund equipment, vehicles, technology, and school-resource-officer positions [1].\n\n## Career and community involvement\nScott is a member of Sneedville American Legion Post #183, where he has served as Post Adjutant, Assistant Post Commander, and Post Commander, and helped start a Veterans Pantry providing supplemental food to Hancock County veterans [1].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Biography - Eric Scott for Hancock County Sheriff](https://eforhcs.com/biography/) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[2] [Eric Scott for Hancock County Sheriff (campaign home)](https://eforhcs.com/) - accessed 2026-07-23","campaigns":[{"contest":"sheriff","county":"Hancock","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Thu, 06 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"TN","title":"Sheriff"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Eric","fullname":"Eric Scott","lastname":"Scott","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"sheriff","contest_title":"Sheriff","county":"Hancock","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-08-06","office_county":null,"office_key":"sheriff","office_title":null,"party":"I","pgr":"general","state":"TN"}],"county":null,"cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"sheriff","contest_title":"Sheriff","county":"Hancock","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-08-06","office_county":null,"office_key":"sheriff","office_title":null,"party":"I","pgr":"general","state":"TN"},"party":"I","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"sheriff","office_title":"Sheriff","state":"TN","terms":[]}],"summary":"Independent candidate for Hancock County Sheriff; Gulf War Army veteran, retired Maryland police officer, and current HCSO training/grants officer.","terms":[],"token":"JY97s3kCAH"}