{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"TRACY STEPP","chatgptsummary":"Tracy Stepp's biography shows four years of service on the Cocke County Legislative Body, demonstrating familiarity with local legislative processes and constituent relations. Records indicate a 2022 election tie resolved by a special election victory. Bio does not indicate experience in budget literacy or state-mandated continuing education through UT CTAS.","notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nTracy Stepp is the incumbent Cocke County commissioner for District 3, Post 2, and is running for re-election as an independent candidate in the August 6, 2026 county general election [1][2]. The Post 2 seat is a four-way race that also includes Democratic nominee Al Pier and independent candidates Casey Jones and Sid Mason [1].\n\n## Office history\nStepp represents District 3, Post 2 on the Cocke County Legislative Body [2]. She first won the seat in a closely contested 2022 election: in the August 4, 2022 county general election, Stepp and incumbent Terry Dawson each received 420 votes, a tie that a single reviewed provisional ballot did not break because that voter had not cast a vote in the commission race [3][4]. On August 15, 2022 the county commission opted to resolve the seat through a November 2022 special election, which Stepp ultimately won, as she now holds the seat [3][4][2].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [August 6, 2026 Cocke County General Election Official Sample Ballot](https://cockecountyelections.org/s/2026-AUGUST-COCKE-COUNTY-GENERAL-SAMPLE-BALLOT.pdf) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[2] [County Legislative Body - Cocke County, Tennessee](https://www.cockecountytn.gov/county-legislative-body) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[3] [All knotted up: Cocke County Commission seat race remains a tie; will be decided by election in November - WBIR](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/politics/all-knotted-up-single-provisional-ballot-could-resolve-tie-for-cocke-county-commission-seat/51-675ec14b-67dc-4c18-8560-682218c352a1) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[4] [District 3, Post 2 CLB Race Remains Undecided - Newport Plain Talk](https://www.newportplaintalk.com/news/article_b9383f5e-180f-11ed-baaf-93e6435473b9.html) - accessed 2026-07-23","firstname":"TRACY","lastname":"STEPP","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"uWlFh7VeHe"},"token":"tracy_stepp"},{"candidatename":"NORMAN SMITH","chatgptsummary":"Norman Smith's biography shows relevant experience as an incumbent Cocke County commissioner and former commission chairman, demonstrating familiarity with local legislative processes and constituent relations. The record notes he stepped down from the chairmanship while retaining his district seat. Bio does not indicate prior budget literacy or specific continuing education experience through UT CTAS.","notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nNorman Smith is the incumbent Cocke County commissioner for District 3, Post 1, and appears on the August 6, 2026 county general election ballot as an independent candidate with no other named opponent (only a write-in line) for the seat [1][2].\n\n## Office history\nSmith represents District 3 on the Cocke County Legislative Body (county commission) [2]. He previously served as chairman of the county commission; according to WATE reporting he stepped down from the chairmanship while remaining a District 3 commissioner [3].\n\n## Further candidate material (not accessible for this profile)\n- [Cocke County, TN commissioner resigns, chairman steps down - WATE](https://www.wate.com/news/cocke-county-news/cocke-county-commissioner-resigns-chairman-steps-down/) (full article could not be retrieved; content summarized from search results only)\n\n## Sources\n[1] [August 6, 2026 Cocke County General Election Official Sample Ballot](https://cockecountyelections.org/s/2026-AUGUST-COCKE-COUNTY-GENERAL-SAMPLE-BALLOT.pdf) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[2] [County Legislative Body - Cocke County, Tennessee](https://www.cockecountytn.gov/county-legislative-body) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[3] [Cocke County, TN commissioner resigns, chairman steps down - WATE](https://www.wate.com/news/cocke-county-news/cocke-county-commissioner-resigns-chairman-steps-down/) - accessed 2026-07-23","firstname":"NORMAN","lastname":"SMITH","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"0kFXX2NG6J"},"token":"norman_smith"},{"candidatename":"AL PIER","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"D","person":{"biography":null,"firstname":"AL","lastname":"PIER","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"cQh9iBFi4z"},"token":"al_pier"},{"candidatename":"SID MASON","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":null,"firstname":"SID","lastname":"MASON","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"6y3LQRePT8"},"token":"sid_mason"},{"candidatename":"CASEY JONES","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":null,"firstname":"CASEY","lastname":"JONES","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"4oGSgWQswQ"},"token":"casey_jones"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"county_commissioner","o.office":null,"office":"county_commission_district_3","officedescription":"A county commissioner is a member of the county's legislative body. The commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, authorizes borrowing, and passes county resolutions and ordinances. Commissioners are elected from districts (or at-large seats) to represent constituents on countywide policy.","officequalities":"- Policy judgment on countywide matters \u2014 budget, taxes, land use, services, and intergovernmental issues \u2014 within Tennessee county-government law.\n- Budget literacy: the commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, and authorizes multi-year bond issues.\n- Legislative process: drafting, amending, and voting on resolutions and ordinances; committee work that pre-screens items.\n- Constituent relations in the district \u2014 case-work and community issues flow through the commissioner's office.\n- Willingness to complete the state-required annual continuing education through UT CTAS.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"County Commissioner","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":{"retrieved_at":"2026-07-19","title":"cocke County, TN \u2014 August 6, 2026 Sample Ballot","url":"https://cockecountyelections.org/s/2026-AUGUST-COCKE-COUNTY-GENERAL-SAMPLE-BALLOT.pdf"},"title":"County Commissioner District 3, Post 1"}