{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"MATT RHEA","chatgptsummary":"Matt Rhea's biography shows incumbent experience as a Fayette County Commissioner for District 1, demonstrating familiarity with local legislative processes and constituent relations required for the role. The record contains no documented controversies or disciplinary actions. Bio does not indicate specific experience in budget literacy regarding multi-year bond issues or state-mandated continuing education through UT CTAS.","notes":null,"party":"R","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nMatt Rhea is the incumbent Fayette County Commissioner for District 1, Position 1 (Somerville), and a Republican candidate for re-election in 2026 [4]. He won a contested May 5, 2026 Republican primary, defeating Dean Clouse 127 votes to 58 (68.65% to 31.35%) [2]. No Democratic candidate qualified for the race, leaving Rhea unopposed for the August 6, 2026 Fayette County general election [2].\n\n## Background and education\nRhea has family roots in Fayette County: he was listed as a casket bearer at the 2007 funeral of William A. \"Bill\" Rhea, Jr., described as a \"native Fayette Countian and United States Veteran,\" and is identified in the obituary as a grandchild of William A. Rhea, Sr. and Jessie Scott Rhea [3]. No source establishes any relation between Matt Rhea and fellow 2026 Fayette County Commission candidate Dave Rhea (District 2, Position 1); the two should not be assumed related.\n\n## Office history\nRhea currently serves as Fayette County Commissioner for District 1 [4].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Candidate Lists | Tennessee Secretary of State](https://sos.tn.gov/elections/2026-candidate-lists) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[2] [Fayette County Election Commission, 2026 Primary Election Summary Report](https://fayettetn.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/26-5-5-Primary-Totals.pdf) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[3] [William \"Bill\" Rhea, Jr. Obituary, September 28, 2007 - Peebles Fayette County Funeral Homes](https://www.peeblesfuneralhome.com/obituaries/william-rheajr)\n[4] [Fayette County Board of County Commissioners](https://fayettetn.us/county-boards-councils/county-commission/) - accessed 2026-07-06","firstname":"Matt","lastname":"Rhea","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"9YSxfKn3kR"},"token":"matt_rhea"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":null,"districtgroup":null,"districtgroupname":null,"districtname":null,"job_type":"county_commissioner","o.office":null,"office":"county_commission_district_1","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":"2026-07-22","title":"Fayette County, TN \u2014 August 6, 2026 Sample Ballot","url":"https://fayettetn.us/departments/election/sample-ballots-8-6-26/"},"title":"County Commission District 1 Position 1"}