{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nJohn Gardner is an incumbent Republican member of the Sullivan County Commission representing District 11 (Kingsport) and a Republican Party nominee for one of the district's three seats in the August 6, 2026 county general election [3][2].\n\n## Office history\nGardner serves as chairman of the 24-member Sullivan County Commission, a position to which he was elected at the commission's annual reorganization meeting in September 2024; he had previously served as chairman pro tem since 2016 [1].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Gardner voted in as new Sullivan County Commission Chairman (Bristol Herald Courier)](https://heraldcourier.com/news/local/government-politics/a-change-of-leadership-new-chairman-selected-new-position-created-by-sullivan-commission/article_4229908e-76f4-11ef-b1dd-03f60e9920e1.html) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-23\n[2] [Sullivan County Commissioners (Sullivan County TN government)](https://sullivancountytn.gov/county-commissioner-information/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-23\n[3] [Official Ballot for Sullivan County, August 6, 2026](https://www.wate.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/42/2026/07/Sullivan-County-August-6-Sample-Ballot.pdf) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-23","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_11","county":"Sullivan","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Thu, 06 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"primary","state":"TN","title":"County Commission District 11"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"John","fullname":"John Gardner","lastname":"Gardner","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_commission_district_11","contest_title":"County Commission District 11","county":"Sullivan","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-08-06","office_county":null,"office_key":"county_commission_district_11","office_title":null,"party":"R","pgr":"primary","state":"TN"}],"county":null,"cycles":[{"general":null,"party":"R","primary":{"contest":"county_commission_district_11","contest_title":"County Commission District 11","county":"Sullivan","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-08-06","office_county":null,"office_key":"county_commission_district_11","office_title":null,"party":"R","pgr":"primary","state":"TN"},"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_commission_district_11","office_title":"County Commission District 11","state":"TN","terms":[]}],"summary":"Incumbent Republican Sullivan County commissioner for District 11 (Kingsport) and current commission chairman (elected 2024); seeking re-election in 2026.","terms":[],"token":"RejFBZ3TD3"}