{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Jeff Cole","chatgptsummary":"Jeff Cole's biography shows relevant experience as an incumbent Anderson County Clerk with a Business Management degree and Certified Public Administrator credential. He previously led the Tennessee County Clerks Association and received \"County Clerk of the Year\" recognition, indicating familiarity with high-volume operations and statutory duties. Bio does not indicate prior specific experience in motor-vehicle registration administration or detailed financial controls for fee remittance.","notes":null,"party":"R","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nJeff Cole is the incumbent Anderson County Clerk, seeking re-election in the Republican primary ahead of the Aug. 6, 2026 general election [1][2].\n\n## Background and education\nCole is a lifelong Anderson County resident and a graduate of Clinton High School. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management from Carson-Newman College and is a Certified Public Administrator, having completed the University of Tennessee's Local Government Leadership Program [3].\n\n## Career\nCole served as President of the Tennessee County Clerks Association in 2015\u20132016 and received the association's \"County Clerk of the Year\" award; Clinton Courier News readers voted him \"Best Local Politician\" in 2008. He serves on the Board of Directors of the County Officials Association and is active in the Anderson County and Rocky Top chambers of commerce [3].\n\n## Office history\nCole is Anderson County Clerk, with the main office at 100 N. Main St., Room 111, Clinton, and a satellite office in Oak Ridge [3].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Update: More candidates file for Anderson County races \u2013 The Courier News](https://www.mycouriernews.com/articles/2026/01/10600/update-more-candidates-file-for-anderson-county-races) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-06\n[2] [Election field taking shape \u2013 The Courier News](https://www.mycouriernews.com/articles/2026/02/10707/election-field-taking-shape) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-06\n[3] [About \u2013 Anderson County Clerk](https://andersoncountyclerk.com/about/) \u2014 accessed 2026-07-06","firstname":"Jeff","lastname":"Cole","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"TORkqeJU9x"},"token":"jeff_cole"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"county_clerk","o.office":null,"office":"county_clerk","officedescription":"The county clerk handles a broad set of public transactions and records: marriage and business licenses, motor-vehicle titling and registration, notary commissions, and the official minutes of the county commission. It is a high-volume administrative and records office.","officequalities":"- Administration of motor-vehicle registration, license plates, marriage licenses, and business-tax registrations \u2014 a high-volume, public-facing operation.\n- Working knowledge of the Tennessee statutes governing each of those functions, which change regularly.\n- Customer-service capacity: the clerk's office is one of the most-visited county offices by ordinary residents.\n- Financial controls for collecting state and local fees and remitting them accurately.\n- Supervision of office staff handling high transaction volume, and technology and process management as more services move online.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"County Clerk","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":{"retrieved_at":"2026-07-02","title":"Anderson County, TN \u2014 August 6, 2026 Sample Ballot","url":"https://www.acelection.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/August-2026-Sample-Ballot.pdf"},"title":"County Clerk"}