Chris Masiongale

Current office and 2026 campaign

Chris Masiongale is a sitting Pickett County commissioner for District 1 and is seeking re-election on the August 6, 2026 county general ballot as a Republican ¹². District 1 is a multi-member district that elects three commissioners; the three incumbents (Masiongale, Tony Beaty and Sheila Moon) are the only candidates on the 2026 ballot for the district's three seats ¹.

Career

Masiongale is director of the Overton/Pickett County Emergency Communications District, the only merged 911 district in Tennessee, which serves about 27,000 residents across the two counties ³. He has led the district for more than a decade ³. He has also served as Overton County's interim EMS director since early 2024, and states he has about 40 years of EMS experience ⁴. According to reporting, he sustained a severe back injury in a 1996 helicopter-rescue fall of about 175 feet, which he has cited as limiting more physically demanding work ⁴.

Office history

Masiongale was elected to the District 1 seat without opposition in the 2022 county general election, running alongside Tony Beaty and Sheila Moon for the district's three seats ⁵.

Documented disputes and controversies

A May 2018 Tennessee Comptroller audit of the Overton/Pickett 911 district questioned roughly $84,000 in expenses, including about $18,700 in food purchases and a $3,599.95 massage chair described as for an employee "quiet space," and questioned whether some equipment purchases were used solely for district purposes ³. Masiongale denied wrongdoing, saying, "I have not been dishonest, deceitful or done anything wrong," and said some resold items generated revenue for the board and that he had brought questionable expenses to the board's attention ³. The 911 board voted to keep him as director, with one member voting no confidence, and adopted new controls including a $500 expense limit and monthly meetings ³.

In 2025, the Overton County Commission voted 10-3 against County Executive Steven Barlow's move to confirm Masiongale as permanent Overton County EMS director; commissioners said the EMS and 911 director roles should be separate full-time positions, with one stating, "We want two separate positions...he needs to drop out of 911" ⁴. Masiongale had offered to take the permanent EMS role at $50,000 a year, which he described as about half his standard rate ⁴. He continued as interim EMS director while the county advertised the position ⁴.

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