Several Hawkins County positions are contested for May 5 primaries

HAWKINS COUNTY — Almost 50 people have shown interest in running for office in Hawkins County, with less than a month until the deadline to become an official candidate. The Hawkins County Election Commission began issuing petitions for the May 5 primary back in late December. Almost every petitioner so far is a Republican, meaning voters will have to choose one — or two, for commissioners — to represent the party in the Aug. 6 general elections. To be a candidate, a person must turn in their petition by noon on Feb. 19, said Hawkins County Administrator of Elections Crystal Rogers. Rogers shares a log of who has picked up and returned a petition. As of Jan. 21, several races are contested — particularly for mayor, sheriff and District 6 commissioner. Mayor Incumbent Mark DeWitte is seeking reelection. He has been the county mayor since 2022. Before that, he was a Rogersville alderman for over a decade and a District 5 commissioner for four years. Business owner David Linkous is challenging DeWitte. He is a Marine veteran and owns a heavy equipment rental outside of Rogersville, as well as a jerky retailer with multiple locations. Church Hill Alderman Keith Gibson is also running for Hawkins County mayor. He was an educator for 32 years and a county commissioner for four. Gibson has been a Church Hill alderman for the past eight years, after serving a seven-year stint in the late 1990s. The Times News previously reported that District 1 Commissioner Syble Vaughan Trent was also running for mayor, but her name was removed from the candidate log. Sheriff As longtime Hawkins County Sheriff Ronnie Lawson retires, six candidates vie for the position. Tony Allen is the chief deputy at the sheriff's office. He has worked at the Hawkins County Sheriff's Office for 30 years, across divisions. Allen is the longest running chief deputy in the county, having held the title for 15 years. David Good is a state trooper, having served in the Tennessee Highway Patrol for 25 years. Before that, he was a city police officer in Bulls Gap. Scott Stewart is the assistant director of the Third Judicial District Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force. He has worked at the Hawkins County Sheriff's Office since 2003, across divisions — but particularly narcotics. Roddy Miller is the Church Hill Police Department's assistant chief. He has worked at the CHPD for nearly 34 years and has been assistant chief since 1997. Chad Britton is a detective at the sheriff's office and a District 4 county commissioner. He has worked at the sheriff's office for 18 years, following a period at an Ohio police department. Britton has been a commissioner since 2022. Karesa G. Floyd Charles also picked up a petition for Hawkins County sheriff. The Times News was unable to reach Charles in time for publication. Road Superintendent Incumbent Danny Jones is seeking reelection. He has been the county's road superintendent since 2022. Before that, Jones worked for the Tennessee Department of Transportation for 27 years as the Hawkins County supervisor and district assistant manager. Jason Light, Church Hill's public works director, is challenging Jones. Light has worked for the town of Church Hill since 2010, becoming its public works director in 2019. He has also been a member of the Church Hill Fire Department for about 14 years. Other county-wide positions Four offices remain uncontested. Trustee Jim Shanks, Clerk of Courts Randall L. Collier and Register of Deeds Judy C. Kirkpatrick all seek reelection. Cindy Rutledge, who has been the chief deputy county clerk since 2014, is running for county clerk. She worked as a deputy clerk in the county clerk's office for 38 years before that. Current Clerk Nancy Davis will not seek reelection, she told the Times News, and endorses Rutledge. District 1 District 1's races are uncontested. The district represents Mount Carmel and Allandale. Both incumbents for commissioner, Syble Vaughan Trent and John Gibson, seek reelection. No newcomers have picked up a petition. Bob Larkins is looking to remain in his school board seat, which he filled in October after a mid-term vacancy. Larkins previously served on the board from 2012 to '20. According to previous reporting from the Times News, he was vice-chairman for one year and chairman for three. Grady White picked up a petition for constable. He is a former Mount Carmel police chief. District 2 Three people seek to represent District 2 — Church Hill and communities to its south — as commissioners. Steve Armstrong, running as an independent, is the Hawkins County Emergency Management Agency's deputy director. Codie Pate, also independent, is a Marine veteran and member of the United Citizens of Hawkins County. This group advocates for individual liberties and limited government, according to its website. Jeff Barrett, a Republican, is one of the current District 2 commissioners. Tom Kern, the other current commissioner, told the Times News that he will not seek reelection. Kern is serving his second term. District 2's school board seat will not be on the ballot. Freddie Castle and James B. Freshour are running for constable. Castle is the incumbent, having served in the role since 2010. Freshour is the IT administrator of the East Tennessee Constables Association with a background in security and law enforcement. District 3 Three people seek two commission seats in District 3, which contains the northeast part of the county. Rodney Roberson is the Rogersville Housing Authority's executive director, with a background in education. Stacy D. Vaughan has a background in local law enforcement and was a county commissioner for 14 years in the early 2000s. Matthew Williams is the owner and senior editor of the recently founded Here! Hawkins County News. No one has picked up a petition for the school board seat yet. Frank H Vaughn and Bryan D. Carter are running for constable. Vaughn is the incumbent. Carter is a physician's assistant and former officer with the Kingsport Police Department. District 4 This district covers Surgoinsville and communities to its south, as well as northern parts of Rogersville. Incumbent commissioner Josh Gilliam seeks reelection. Surgoinsville Alderman Warren Bishop is also running for a seat on the commission. No one has filed a petition for District 4 constable or school board member. District 5 District 5 represents Rogersville. Incumbent commissioner Glenda Davis seeks reelection, while her district partner Jason Roach announced he will not. Jamie Miller, the Emergency Management Agency's director, is also running for commissioner. Ted Coppola picked up a petition, but told the Times News he will withdraw from the race. District 5's school board seat will not be on the ballot. Ben Cupp and Chris Funk are running for constable. Cupp is a police dispatcher for the town of Rogersville. He is also a private process server for a few attorneys, he said. The Times News was unable to reach Funk in time for publication. District 6 District 6 residents, who live in the northwest part of the county, have the most options for commissioners. Five candidates have picked up petitions. Dane Chisholm, who is running as an independent, is a leader of the United Citizens of Hawkins County. He is also a CDL driver and an Army veteran. Edwin Cope is a farmer and at-large member of the Hawkins County Planning Commission. Incumbent commissioner Nancy Barker is also the executive director of the Rogersville/Hawkins County Chamber of Commerce. Mark Baker is a proto-technician at Mahle Motorsports and a little league coach. Denny Arnold is also running to be a commissioner. The Times News was unable to reach him in time for publication. Larry Clonce, the other sitting commissioner, said he will not run for reelection. For the open school board seat, Debbie Shedden seeks reelection as the current representative and the board's vice chair. Wayne Cunningham and Tim Kerney are running for constable. Cunningham is the incumbent. The Times News was unable to reach Kerney in time for publication. District 7 Incumbent commissioners Bobby Jinks and Robbie Palmer seek reelection for District 7, which represents Bulls Gap and the southwest part of the county. Tom Laster has also picked up a petition for District 7 commissioner. Tammy Davis and Alina Gorlova are running for the district's school board seat. Davis is a desk clerk at Rural Health Consortium and a former Bulls Gap School detention employee. Gorlova is the district's current representative and a former public school teacher. No one has picked up a petition to be constable yet. The Kingsport Times News will publish a final rundown of candidates after the Feb. 19 deadline passes. Until then, it will update the online article "Here's who is running for office in Hawkins County" as the election commission issues and receives candidate petitions. Additionally, the Kingsport Times News has written profiles for the mayor and sheriff candidates. It will continue this coverage for contested positions.