{"campaigns":[{"candidatename":"BRIAN CAMPBELL","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":null,"firstname":"BRIAN","lastname":"CAMPBELL","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"DpEyQxyyPm"},"token":"brian_campbell"},{"candidatename":"TERRY HICKEY","chatgptsummary":"Terry Hickey's biography shows relevant experience as a current Van Buren County Commissioner and commission chairperson, indicating familiarity with local budgeting, legislative processes, and constituent relations. The record documents no controversies or disciplinary actions. Bio does not indicate prior experience in multi-year bond issuance or state-mandated continuing education completion.","notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nTerry Hickey is an Independent candidate for the Van Buren County Commission, District 3, on the August 6, 2026 county general ballot.\n\n## Office history\nHickey is a current member of the Van Buren County Commission. The county's official elected-officials directory lists him as the commission's chairperson [1], and he appears in the University of Tennessee CTAS roster of sitting Van Buren County commissioners [2].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Van Buren County Elected Officials](https://vanburencountytn.com/elected_officials/index.html) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[2] [Van Buren County Officials - UT County Technical Assistance Service](https://www.ctas.tennessee.edu/county/van-buren) - accessed 2026-07-23","firstname":"TERRY","lastname":"HICKEY","middlename":null,"suffix":null,"token":"K5UhrCD4Ke"},"token":"terry_hickey"},{"candidatename":"RIP VAN WINKLE","chatgptsummary":"Rip Van Winkle's biography shows prior service on the Van Buren County Commission and participation in official proceedings, demonstrating familiarity with legislative processes and constituent relations. No controversies or disciplinary records appear in the provided text. Bio does not indicate experience in budget literacy or state-mandated continuing education through UT CTAS.","notes":null,"party":"R","person":{"biography":"> **Editorial note - same-name confusion.** This candidate shares his name with Rip Van Winkle, the title character of Washington Irving's well-known short story, which dominates web searches for the name. The person described here is a Van Buren County, Tennessee resident and candidate for county office; he is unrelated to the fictional character.\n\n## Current office and 2026 campaign\nRip Van Winkle is a Republican candidate for the Van Buren County Commission, District 3, on the August 6, 2026 county general ballot.\n\n## Office history\nVan Winkle has previously served in Van Buren County government. He appeared on the county's August 2018 official ballot as a candidate for County Commissioner, District 3 [1], and is recorded participating in County Commission proceedings in county commission minutes from this period [2]. He is also listed as a Van Buren County contact for the Tennessee Republican Party [3].\n\n## Sources\n[1] [Official Ballot, Van Buren County, August 2018 (TN Secretary of State)](https://tnsos.org/elections/ballots/383.pdf) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[2] [Minutes of the Van Buren County Commission, March 21, 2017](https://vanburencountytn.com/agendas_minutes/minutes/2017/03212017.pdf) - accessed 2026-07-23\n[3] [Find Your County GOP - Tennessee Republican Party](https://tngop.org/find-your-county-gop) - accessed 2026-07-23","firstname":"RIP","lastname":"WINKLE","middlename":"VAN","suffix":null,"token":"g7JFGLcfdZ"},"token":"rip_van_winkle"},{"candidatename":"JUSTIN \"BUBBA\" THOMPSON","chatgptsummary":null,"notes":null,"party":"I","person":{"biography":null,"firstname":"JUSTIN","lastname":"THOMPSON","middlename":"\"BUBBA\"","suffix":null,"token":"RwVU01Ux1P"},"token":"justin_bubba_thompson"}],"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":2,"referendum":null,"source":{"retrieved_at":"2026-07-21","title":"VanBuren County, TN \u2014 August 6, 2026 Sample Ballot","url":"https://tnsos.org/elections/ballots/749.pdf"},"title":"County Commissioner District 3"}