DISTRICT 8 DEMOCRATIC NOMINATING CAUCUS
Following the vacancy on the Anderson County Commission in District 8, the Anderson County Democratic Party will hold a special nominating caucus to select the Democratic nominee for the November 3 general election.
Rather than having the Party Executive Committee select the nominee, the Executive Committee has adopted a process that puts that decision in the hands of eligible Democratic voters who live in District 8.
Friday, September 4, 2026
Credentialing begins: 5:00 PM
Caucus begins: 6:00 PM
Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church — Social Hall
809 Oak Ridge Turnpike
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
District 8 Caucus:
What You Need to Know
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Following the District 8 vacancy on the Anderson County Commission, the Anderson County Democratic Party is holding a special nominating caucus to choose the Democratic nominee for the November 3 general election.
Rather than having the Party’s Executive Committee select the nominee internally, eligible Democratic voters who live in District 8 will make that choice.
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Because the vacancy occurred this close to the November election, Tennessee’s late-vacancy process does not provide time for another primary. Instead, political parties select their nominees through a party-convention process.
The Anderson County Democratic Party bylaws provide for a special caucus when a local Democratic nominee must be selected without a primary. Our Executive Committee voted to use an open District 8 caucus so the nomination is decided by District 8 Democrats.
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You must be a registered voter who lives in Anderson County Commission District 8 and qualify to participate as a Democrat under the caucus rules adopted by the Anderson County Democratic Party.
Tennessee does not register voters by political party, so participants will complete a Democratic affirmation during credentialing. Available voter-registration and primary-participation information may also be reviewed.
New voters, recent movers and voters without a meaningful primary history will not be excluded simply because they do not have an established voting history. Questions of eligibility will be reviewed individually, and an appeal process will be available.
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No. Pre-registration is optional.
Pre-registering will help us prepare and may make the check-in process easier, but walk-ins are welcome.
Anyone who is in the credentialing line by 6:00 p.m. on Friday, September 4 will be permitted to complete the credentialing process.
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Credentialing begins at 5:00 p.m., and the caucus begins at 6:00 p.m.
After the voting body is established, qualified candidates will have an opportunity to address participants. Voting will then be conducted by public roll call in accordance with Anderson County Democratic Party bylaws.
A candidate must receive a majority of the eligible votes cast to become the Democratic nominee. There is no proxy voting, absentee voting or secret ballot.
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Anyone interested in seeking the Democratic nomination should begin the process immediately because the election calendar is extremely compressed.
Prospective candidates must complete the Party’s candidate declaration process and separately satisfy all legal qualification requirements, Anderson County Election Commission requirements and any applicable Tennessee Democratic Party candidate-eligibility requirements.
Interested in running? Visit our District 8 candidate page for the complete process and forms.
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September 3 at 6:00 p.m. — Party administrative target for candidate declarations
September 4 at 5:00 p.m. — Caucus credentialing begins
September 4 at 6:00 p.m. — District 8 Democratic Nominating Caucus
September 8 — Party’s recommended practical filing target
September 9 at noon — Current statutory qualifying deadline
November 3 — General Election -
Transparency matters, especially when the timeline is this short.
The complete caucus rules, credentialing process, candidate requirements and procedures adopted by the Anderson County Democratic Party Executive Committee are available publicly.
Read the Full District 8 Caucus Rules →
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The Executive Committee’s job is to establish and administer a fair process — not decide which candidate District 8 Democrats should support.
The rules were adopted before candidates entered the process, and the Executive Committee specifically chose an open caucus rather than an internal nomination vote.
We made the rules. District 8 Democrats will make the choice.
The Rules Before the Players
When the Anderson County Democratic Party learned that a District 8 vacancy was likely, our Executive Committee began establishing the process before there were declared candidates.
We believe that matters.
Our responsibility is to write fair rules, apply them consistently and administer the process — not decide which candidate District 8 Democrats should support.
That is why the Executive Committee chose an open District 8 caucus rather than selecting the nominee internally.
We made the rules. District 8 Democrats will make the choice.
Questions?
Questions about participating in the caucus or in seeking the nomination: contact@andersoncountydemocraticparty.com
For official candidate qualification, petitions and ballot-access requirements, prospective candidates should contact the Anderson County Election Commission directly.