{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"Ryan Ramkhelawan","chatgptsummary":"Ramkhelawan seeks the Shelby County Commissioner District 3 seat in the May 2026 Democratic primary, facing Republican Michele Dial in August. The provided biography offers no evidence of prior elected office, professional background, or educational history. Consequently, there is no documented record of policy judgment on countywide matters such as budgeting, land use, or intergovernmental relations within Tennessee law. The text does not demonstrate budget literacy regarding the commission\u2019s authority over taxes and bonds. It also fails to show experience with legislative processes like drafting ordinances or committee work.","notes":"","party":"D","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\n- Ryan Ramkhelawan is a candidate for Shelby County Commissioner, District 3 in the Democratic primary on May 5, 2026. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n- Candidate in the Democratic primary on May 5, 2026. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n- He is facing Republican candidate Michele Dial in the general election on August 6, 2026. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n## Background and education\n- No educational background is provided in the sources. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n## Office history\n- No prior elected office is mentioned in the provided sources for Ryan Ramkhelawan. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n## Business interests and wealth source\n- **2026** \u2014 [County Commission (SS-8005)](https://conflict.app.tn.gov/conflict/view_form_8005.htm?name=RAMKHELAWAN&id=103904&f=199670&v=1) \u2014 filed as a Shelby County official/candidate\n\n*Source: [Tennessee Ethics Commission Statement of Interest Search](https://conflict.app.tn.gov/conflict/search.htm). Scraped 2026-04-25.*\n\n## Family\n- No family information is provided in the sources. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n","firstname":"Ryan","lastname":"Ramkhelawan","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"IRlwFGCnNJ"},"token":"ryan_ramkhelawan"},{"candidatename":"Michele Dial","chatgptsummary":"Nearly three terms as Lakeland Commissioner and two peer-elected Vice Mayorships demonstrate direct experience in local legislative processes and constituent relations within a single-member district. Her thirty-six-year public education career provides context for her stated priority on education policy. As a Republican candidate, she aims to address transparency of county and MSCS budget dollars, reflecting an interest in fiscal accountability. However, the biography offers no specific evidence regarding her literacy with Shelby County\u2019s complex budgeting, tax rates, or bond authorization processes.","notes":"","party":"R","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\n- Lakeland Commissioner; served nearly three terms. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n- Vice Mayor of Lakeland, elected twice by her peers. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n- Republican candidate in the primary on May 5, 2026. ([Daily Memphian](https://dailymemphian.com/subscriber/article/55246))\n- Running to fill the seat of Mick Wright, who is term-limited. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n- Top priorities include education, public safety, and transparency of county and MSCS budget dollars. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n## Career\n- 36-year veteran of public education. ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n## Office history\n- Lakeland Commissioner (District 3 area). ([AOL](https://www.aol.com/articles/meet-candidates-shelby-county-commissions-093103154.html))\n\n## Business interests and wealth source\nNo statement of interest filing found as of 2026-04-25. Search the [Tennessee Ethics Commission Statement of Interest Search](https://conflict.app.tn.gov/conflict/search.htm).\n\n## Family\n- Information not provided in sources.\n\n---\n*Compiled from publicly available web sources on 2026-04-18.*\n","firstname":"Michele","lastname":"Dial","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"fbU2l5Mjbb"},"token":"michele_dial"}],"choices":null,"description":"","district":"3","districtgroup":"county_commission","districtgroupname":"County Commission","districtname":"District 3","job_type":"county_commissioner","o.office":"county_commission_district_3","office":"county_commission_district_3","officedescription":"Shelby County Commissioners are the 13 members of the county's legislative body. Each represents a single-member district, and together they pass resolutions and ordinances, approve the annual county budget, set the property-tax rate, and set countywide policy. They attend regular Monday commission meetings and Wednesday committee meetings and must complete at least seven hours of continuing education each year through the UT County Technical Assistance Service (CTAS).\n\n**Salary:** $34,900/year ([Action News 5, Dec 2021](https://www.actionnews5.com/2021/12/21/pay-raises-approved-elected-officials-shelby-county/)).","officequalities":"- Policy judgment on countywide matters \u2014 budget, taxes, land use, services, intergovernmental \u2014 within Tennessee county-government law and the Shelby County Charter.\n- Budget literacy: the 13-member commission approves the county budget, sets the property-tax rate, and authorizes bond issues that span decades.\n- Legislative process: drafting, amending, and voting on resolutions and ordinances; chairing or sitting on committees that pre-screen items.\n- Constituent relations in a single-member district of roughly 70,000 residents \u2014 case-work and community issues flow through the commissioner's office.\n- Willingness to complete the state-required seven hours of annual continuing education through UT CTAS.","officeterm":4,"officetitle":"County Commissioner District 3","partisan":1,"pgr":"primary","quantity":1,"referendum":"","source":null,"title":"County Commissioner District 3"}