{"biography":"Rebecca Edwards is a Democratic candidate running for Shelby County Board of Commissioners District 10 in Tennessee [1]. She is one of five candidates in the Democratic primary scheduled for May 5, 2026, with the general election set for August 6, 2026 [1]. Edwards has lived in District 10 for 55 years [1].\n\nEdwards graduated from Wooddale Senior High School and holds bachelor's degrees from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and Christian Brothers University [1]. Her professional background includes working as a nonprofit founder, managing people and budgets, teaching at a junior college, and advocating within government agencies [1]. In 2026, she completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, outlining her experience in connecting individuals to essential resources and collaborating with diverse groups [1].\n\nA significant part of Edwards' career involves the performing arts. She founded Cultural Arts For Everyone (CAF\u00c9), a nonprofit presenting organization dedicated to bringing artistic experiences to students, new audiences, and underserved communities [1]. Under her leadership, CAF\u00c9 presented over 90 productions and reached more than 119,000 people, half of whom were school-age children [1]. Edwards noted that her organization became the first to sell out the 2,100-seat Cannon Center with Ailey II and was recognized as a Kennedy Center Partner in Education, partnering with Memphis City Schools for educator and student workshops [1].\n\nEdwards previously ran for office in 2022. She was a candidate for the Memphis-Shelby County Schools school board, District 9 [1]. In the general election held on August 4, 2022, she lost to incumbent Joyce Dorse-Coleman, receiving 40.9% of the vote compared to Dorse-Coleman's 59.1% [1].\n\nHer service has been recognized by The Links, River City (TN) Chapter, Emerge Tennessee, and Women of Achievement [1]. Currently, she serves on the Orange Mound Land Trust Advisory Board [1].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Rebecca Edwards (Tennessee) - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Rebecca_Edwards_(Tennessee))\n- [2] [Rebecca Edwards - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Rebecca_Edwards)\n- [3] [Rebecca Edwards (North Carolina) - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Rebecca_Edwards_(North_Carolina))\n- [4] [Becky Edwards - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Becky_Edwards)\n- [5] [Tennessee elections, 2026 - Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Tennessee_elections,_2026)\n- [7] [Candidate Lists | Tennessee Secretary of State](https://sos.tn.gov/elections/2026-candidate-lists)\n- [8] [2026 Election United States Senate - Tennessee - FEC.gov](https://www.fec.gov/data/elections/senate/TN/2026/)\n- [9] [2026 Election United States House - Tennessee - District 05 - FEC.gov](https://www.fec.gov/data/elections/house/TN/05/2026/)\n- [10] [2026 Election United States House - Tennessee - District 02 - FEC.gov](https://www.fec.gov/data/elections/house/TN/02/2026/)\n- [11] [Becky Edwards (Utah politician)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Becky_Edwards_(politician))\n- [12] [2026 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections_in_Tennessee)","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commissioner_district_10","county":"shelby","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"primary","state":"TN","title":"County Commissioner District 10"}],"cf_filings":[{"county":"shelby","displayname":"Edwards, Rebecca","documents":[{"datesubmitted":"04/16/26","documentid":"395CE012-EDA7-4282-87C2-D9E844C1011D","documentname":"Edwards, Rebecca Jane - CFD - 1st Quarter 2026","documentnameid":["395CE012-EDA7-4282-87C2-D9E844C1011D","Edwards, Rebecca Jane - CFD - 1st Quarter 2026"],"documenttype":"2026 CFD","electionname":null},{"datesubmitted":"02/27/26","documentid":"ABD171E0-9039-43D9-AD43-79B702886312","documentname":"Edwards, Rebecca Jane - Appointment of Treasurer 2026.pdf","documentnameid":["ABD171E0-9039-43D9-AD43-79B702886312","Edwards, Rebecca Jane - Appointment of Treasurer 2026.pdf"],"documenttype":"Appointment of Treasurer","electionname":null}],"filertype":"Candidate","officename":"Shelby County Commissioner, Dist. 10","source_customer_id":"EE6EBC62-7B7C-432F-869E-4DE111271E07","source_filer_id":"84F54F4F-5537-477C-8222-6C4DCC9C7132","source_system":"easyvote","state":"TN","status":"Active"}],"firstname":"Rebecca","fullname":"Rebecca Jane Edwards","lastname":"Edwards","middlename":"Jane","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commissioner_district_10","contest_title":"County Commissioner District 10","county":"shelby","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-05-05","office_county":"shelby","office_key":"county_commission_district_10","office_title":"County Commissioner District 10","party":"D","pgr":"primary","state":"TN"}],"county":"shelby","cycles":[{"general":null,"party":"D","primary":{"contest":"county_commissioner_district_10","contest_title":"County Commissioner District 10","county":"shelby","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-05-05","office_county":"shelby","office_key":"county_commission_district_10","office_title":"County Commissioner District 10","party":"D","pgr":"primary","state":"TN"},"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_commission_district_10","office_title":"County Commissioner District 10","state":"TN","terms":[]}],"summary":"Rebecca Edwards is a Democratic candidate for Shelby County Commissioner District 10 in Tennessee, running in the May 2026 primary; she previously ran unsuccessfully for a Memphis-Shelby County Schools board seat in 2022.","terms":[],"token":"MRQmpBWjXj"}