Decatur County shares Republican primary ballot, early voting runs April 15-30

A Republican primary ballot that already includes the County Clerk race will be in Decatur County voters’ hands starting April 15, giving the county a 16-day early-voting window before the May 5 primary.

Early voting will run through April 30 at the Decatur County Election Office, 67 S East Street in Decaturville, with office hours set for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Voters who cast a ballot in person must bring an accepted photo ID. GoVoteTN can be used to check sample ballots, polling locations and elected officials.

The county’s official Republican primary ballot is dated May 5, 2026 and lists the Decatur County Election Commission as Grafton Dodd, chairman; Lisa Brasher, secretary; and members Kurt Holbert, Chelsey Sparks and Robert Lynn Brasher. Teresa Bedingfield is the administrator of elections. The ballot also includes write-in lines, a reminder that even a local primary can shape who advances to county office.

The most directly local race visible on the sample ballot is County Clerk, a post that touches everyday county business for Decatur County residents. Because this is the Republican primary, the ballot is the first gatekeeper for GOP voters before the later general election on August 6, when Democratic and Independent candidates will appear. That gives the April 15-30 early-voting stretch outsized importance: the votes cast now help determine which names reach the next round, and in some county contests the primary can do much of the deciding before fall campaigning even begins.

Decaturville residents know where the action is. The election office sits near the county seat’s courthouse area on Main Street, and the county’s election information hub is the same office that fields registration and ballot questions. With the primary set for Tuesday, May 5, the practical deadline is simple: if voters want to avoid Election Day lines, they have to use the April 15-30 window and show up with the right photo identification. In a local election where one countywide race is already on the ballot, that kind of turnout can shape who holds county power next.