{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Beau Hawk","chatgptsummary":"Beau Hawk's biography demonstrates executive management experience as President of the Knoxville-Oak Ridge Central Labor Council and a business representative for construction trades, roles involving negotiation with thousands of workers and union leaders. The record contains no documented controversies or disciplinary actions. Bio does not indicate prior experience in county budgeting or familiarity with Tennessee county-government law.","notes":null,"party":"D","person":{"biography":"Beau Hawk is a Democratic candidate running for Knox County Mayor in the May 5, 2026 primary election [1]. He is currently the President of the Knoxville-Oak Ridge Central Labor Council and works as a business representative for the Knoxville Building & Construction Trades Council [8]. A member of Ironworkers Local 384, Hawk was elected president by representatives from over 30 unions comprising thousands of workers, including KAT bus drivers, grocery store employees, and postal workers [3]. He is described as an ironworker and labor leader who rose through union organizing ranks [3].\n\nHawk grew up in Chattanooga before moving to Knoxville [17]. His campaign biography states he was raised by a single mother who worked as a house cleaner, which instilled in him a belief in the dignity of hard work [3]. He entered the mayoral race on February 12, 2026, becoming the first Democrat to file for the office [17]. At the time of his announcement, he was the only local Democrat to declare his candidacy [8]. The current mayor, Glenn Jacobs, is term-limited after serving since at least 2018 [8].\n\nHawk\u2019s platform centers on affordability and economic opportunity for working families. He argues that housing costs and rents in Knox County are outpacing income, making the middle-class single-earner household difficult to sustain [14]. To address this, he has committed to raising the minimum wage for Knox County employees to $15 per hour [14]. On public safety, Hawk prioritizes ensuring full pension benefits for Knox County Sheriff\u2019s Office employees, claiming previous attempts to distribute pensions were a \"rip off\" [14]. He also lists training and equipment as top priorities for public safety [14].\n\nHawk characterizes himself as not being a career politician, stating that Knox County needs leadership that listens and builds consensus rather than continuing the \"good ole boy system\" he believes has dominated local government [3]. He criticizes the Republican party for running the county for decades without sharing a sense of duty toward opportunity and affordability [6]. His campaign website is hawkforknox.com [3].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Candidate Lists | Tennessee Secretary of State](https://sos.tn.gov/elections/2026-candidate-lists)\n- [3] [Beau Hawk for Knox County Mayor](https://www.hawkforknox.com)\n- [6] [Beau Hawk is a labor leader and community advocate ...](https://www.facebook.com/knox.dems/posts/beau-hawk-is-a-labor-leader-and-community-advocate-running-for-mayor-to-fight-fo/1205363928437596/)\n- [8] [Election 2026: Beau Hawk announces run for Knox County mayor | wbir.com](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/politics/election-2026-beau-hawk-announces-run-for-knox-county-mayor/51-61184c31-f487-495a-843e-178ecf2b4e4f)\n- [13] [Meet your candidates for Knox County Mayor - Knox TN Today](https://www.knoxtntoday.com/meet-your-candidates-for-knox-county-mayor/)\n- [14] [Knox County Mayoral Candidates on Public Safety, the Economy and Growth | WIVK-FM](https://www.wivk.com/2026/04/06/47844/)\n- [17] [First democratic candidate joins Knox County mayoral race](https://www.wvlt.tv/2026/02/13/first-democratic-candidate-joins-knox-county-mayoral-race/)\n- [18] [Knox County mayoral candidates on public safety, the economy and growth](https://www.wvlt.tv/2026/03/11/knox-county-mayoral-candidates-public-safety-economy-growth/)","firstname":"Beau","lastname":"Hawk","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"6UEBtz75Z9"},"token":"beau_hawk"},{"candidatename":"Betsy Henderson","chatgptsummary":"Betsy Henderson's biography shows elected service on the Knox County Board of Education and prior work in a U.S. Representative's office, demonstrating legislative familiarity and constituent engagement relevant to county governance. In January 2025, she faced calls for removal after testifying before a state committee as board chair while claiming personal capacity, prompting an ethics inquiry regarding her alignment with official board positions. Bio does not indicate executive management experience of a consolidated budget or intergovernmental coordination experience with municipal and state agencies.","notes":null,"party":"R","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nBetsy Henderson has represented District 6 on the Knox County Board of Education since 2020 and has twice been elected the board's chair [1]. She won the Republican nomination for Knox County Mayor in the May 5, 2026 primary, receiving 44.73% of the vote (20,070 votes) against at-large County Commissioners Larsen Jay (31.15%, 13,975 votes) and Kim Frazier (24.12%, 10,822 votes) [2][3]. She advances to face Democratic nominee Beau Hawk in the August 6, 2026 general election for the seat being vacated by term-limited incumbent Republican Glenn Jacobs [4][5].\n\n## Background and education\nHenderson is an East Tennessee native who grew up in Louisville, Tennessee, and attended Maryville City Schools before earning a degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville [1]. She lives in the Hardin Valley community of Knox County with her husband, Scott, and their two children, Logan and Molly [1].\n\n## Career\nAfter college, Henderson moved to Washington, D.C. to work in the office of U.S. Rep. Jimmy Duncan, beginning the job \"just days after September 11, 2001\" [1]. She later returned to Knox County and was elected to the school board in 2020 [6].\n\n## Documented disputes and controversies\nOn January 28, 2025, Henderson testified before a Tennessee Senate committee in support of Gov. Bill Lee's universal school voucher proposal, identifying herself as the Knox County Board of Education chair while saying she was speaking in her \"personal capacity\" - despite the board itself having voted not to support the voucher plan [7]. Knox County Commissioner Terry Hill, a former Knox County Schools board chair, said Henderson may have violated the board's code of ethics by touting the proposal in that setting [8]. A Change.org petition calling for her removal from the board drew more than 1,700 signatures, arguing she \"did not represent the Knox County community and did not value the input of the community\" [9]. Henderson said she had no intention of leaving the board regardless of the petition [7].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Betsy Henderson taps campaign treasurer in move toward running for Knox County mayor - WBIR](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/politics/betsy-henderson-take-steps-toward-mayor-run/51-4ec5f096-ede3-46e9-ba74-fa6aa1509e9b) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[2] [Betsy Henderson wins Republican nominee for Knox County mayor - WATE](https://www.wate.com/news/top-stories/betsy-henderson-republican-knox-mayor/) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[3] [Cumulative Results Report, Knox County Election Commission, May 5, 2026](https://elections.knoxcounty.org/assets/data/cumulative.pdf) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[4] [2026 Knox County, Tennessee mayoral election - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Knox_County,_Tennessee_mayoral_election) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[5] [Betsy Henderson wins Republican primary for Knox County mayor's race - WBIR](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/politics/elections/betsy-henderson-wins-republican-primary-for-knox-county-mayors-race/51-9e39d3bf-7e6a-41bb-828a-729c17c87bf2) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[6] [Betsy Henderson - LegiStorm biography](https://www.legistorm.com/person/bio/518664/Betsy_Henderson.html) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[7] [Knox County Schools chair faces calls to step down after speaking in 'personal capacity' to support universal school vouchers - WBIR](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/education/betsy-henderson-faces-calls-to-step-down-after-speaking-in-support-of-universal-school-vouchers/51-39718e73-9e97-4736-acd3-e4e0f917ffe7) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[8] ['Not acceptable behavior' | Former KCS chair condemns current chair after she touted universal school vouchers in TN legislature - WBIR](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/education/former-kcs-chair-says-betsy-henderson-may-have-violated-ethics-code-by-touting-school-vouchers-in-tn-legislature/51-c479924e-e267-4784-84ec-01721bf41da1) - accessed 2026-07-06\n[9] [Hundreds of people are joining an effort to have the Knox County Schools' board chair removed - WBIR](https://www.wbir.com/article/news/education/hundreds-of-people-are-joining-effort-to-have-the-knox-county-boe-chair-removed/51-a08cd35a-ec62-427e-8478-cc3675f7bc52) - accessed 2026-07-06","firstname":"Betsy","lastname":"Henderson","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"bvHqSt2FE4"},"token":"betsy_henderson"}],"choices":null,"description":null,"district":"knox","districtgroup":"county","districtgroupname":"County","districtname":null,"job_type":"county_mayor","o.office":"county_mayor","office":"county_mayor","officedescription":"The county mayor (county executive in some counties) is the county's chief executive and administrative officer. The mayor prepares the annual budget for the county commission, oversees the daily operation of county departments, and represents the county in intergovernmental dealings. It is an administrative office: the commission sets policy, the mayor runs the operation.","officequalities":"- Executive management of a metropolitan county government of roughly 910,000 residents and a billion-dollar-plus consolidated budget across health, public works, corrections, the Sheriff's Office (administrative side), and many smaller departments.\n- Ability to negotiate and defend an annual budget before a 13-member County Commission.\n- Intergovernmental capacity: coordinating with the City of Memphis, six suburban municipalities, the State of Tennessee, and federal agencies, especially on shared services like MATA, MLGW, EDGE, and the Health Department.\n- Working familiarity with Tennessee county-government law, the Shelby County Charter, open-meetings, and procurement rules.\n- Public-facing communication and crisis-management skills for a large, diverse, news-attentive county.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"Knox County Mayor","partisan":1,"pgr":"general","quantity":1,"referendum":null,"source":{"retrieved_at":"2026-07-19","title":"knox County, TN \u2014 August 6, 2026 Sample Ballot","url":"https://www.knoxcounty.org/election/pdfs/General%20Sample%20Ballot_08.06.26.pdf"},"title":"County Mayor"}