Ballot Project

← Back to Jefferson County, Tennessee: Election on 2026-08-06

Contest for School Board District 1

general - Partisan - School Board Member
Elect 2 candidates

About this office

A school board member serves on the elected body that governs a public school district. The board sets district policy and budget priorities and hires and evaluates the superintendent, while leaving day-to-day management to the administration.

Term length: 4 years.

This role calls for

  • Policy judgment for a public school district — setting direction while leaving day-to-day management to the superintendent.
  • Budget literacy for operating and capital budgets, in coordination with the county commission (which appropriates) and the state.
  • Ability to hire, evaluate, and when necessary replace the superintendent — the board's highest-stakes recurring decision.
  • Constituent relations with parents, teachers, principals, and community members.
  • Willingness to complete the state-required annual training through the Tennessee School Boards Association.

Derived from the office's statutory duties and operational reality. Candidate summaries below map each candidate's documented experience to these requirements.

Campaigns

DOUG IBBETSON

DOUG IBBETSON

Republican
👍 👎 🤡 😡 🤷
Doug Ibbetson's biography shows relevant experience as an incumbent Jefferson County Board of Education member and vice chair, demonstrating familiarity with policy judgment and constituent relations. His background in corporate and independent business informs his focus on fiscal responsibility for district budgets. The biography documents no controversies or disciplinary records. Bio does not indicate experience in hiring or evaluating a superintendent or completing state-required annual training through the Tennessee School Boards Association.
MICHELLE JINNETTE

MICHELLE JINNETTE

Republican
👍 👎 🤡 😡 🤷
No campaign summary available.
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