The 2026 Republican Candidates Facing Off In The Primaries

Haywood County Republican Primary Candidates

Early voting began February 12^th and will end on primary election day, March 3, 2026. Filing for the Haywood County school board isn’t until July; however, it is a nonpartisan race and will not require primary run-offs.

Maybe you are one of those voters who hasn't decided who to vote for yet. To help you make the decision, a Meet and Greet with the candidates in local races is being held at the Haywood Republican Party Headquarters. Meet your Republican candidates and enjoy some good free food.

This Meet and Greet event is not sponsored by the Haywood County Republican Party. It is an event sponsored and held by the candidates themselves. The Haywood County Republican Party does not endorse candidates in the Republican primary. 

When: February 21, 2026 at 2:00pm - 4pm

Where: Haywood County Republican Party HQ

297 N Haywood St

Waynesville

Below is a list of Republican candidates who will be running in the 2026 primaries, most of whom will be at the February 21^st Meet and Greet. They will briefly discuss their backgrounds and platforms, followed by a question-and-answer session.

Republican 2026 primary candidates are as follows:

County Commissioner

Three of the five county commissioner seats are on the ballot this year. Two of the incumbents — Republicans Tommy Long and Terry Ramey — are running for reelection. 

Commissioner Jennifer Best announced she will not seek another term, making one seat a wide-open race. 

Long has been on the board the longest, serving since 2018. Ramey joined in 2022, unseating the last remaining Democrat from the board.

Four other Republicans have also thrown their hats in the ring:  

• Tiffany Collins, from Waynesville. Tiffany Collins is ready to step up as a candidate who will consistently represent the women of Haywood County, who are underrepresented despite being the majority of the county’s residents.

  
  

• Jeff Stines, a Republican and former Waynesville Public Works director, has also added his name to the list of candidates.

  
  

• David Burnette is a current Haywood County Schools board member representing Canton. David Burnette is the CEO of the Waynesville Telco Community Credit Union.

  
  

• Howard William Knepper is a businessman who owns the Philly Italian Pastas & Submarines in Canton.

Sheriff

Current Haywood County Sheriff Bill Wilke has filed to run for his second term. Wilke became the county’s first Republican sheriff in nearly a century when he was elected in 2022.

Republican Mark Mease has also entered the race, vying for the primary nomination against Wilke.

Register of Deeds

Democrat Sherri Rogers has served as the county’s Registrar since 2009, but she has decided not to seek reelection in 2026.

Instead, her Certified Assistant Stacy Moore, has decided to run for the seat as a Republican. Moore and Rogers have worked closely together for more than 12 years, and Moore only decided to run after Rogers bowed out.

Only one other challenger signed up to run for Register of Deeds — Republican Kristina Watson of Canton.

Tax Collector

Republican Sebastian Cothran ousted the former Democratic tax collector Greg West in 2022, becoming the youngest tax collector in Haywood’s history. But one term was enough for Cothran — he is not seeking reelection in 2026.

His announcement left the seat open, and three candidates are taking advantage of the opportunity.

Republican Emily Sapp has spent the last five years working in the tax collections office under both West and Cothran.

Former Democrat Greg West is running again to reclaim the seat he lost to Mr. Cothran, but this time as a Republican rather than a Democrat.

Meanwhile, Republican Andrew Ferguson stepped up quickly to announce his candidacy. Ferguson ran for tax collector in 2018, but narrowly lost.

NC House District 118

Incumbent Republican Mark Pless has represented the 118th district (including all of Haywood, Madison, and Yancey counties) since 2021.

Republican Jimmy Rogers is a current member of the Haywood County Board of Education with more than two decades of experience as a representative for the school system in Haywood County. Now, he has his eyes on a seat in the state legislature.

NC Senate: District 50

Haywood County is unevenly split into two state senate districts. District 50 encompasses the largest part of the county, including Waynesville, Lake Junaluska, Maggie Valley, and it extends to the seven other western counties.

Incumbent Republican Kevin Corbin from Macon County is running for his fourth term in the seat since his election in 2020. Corbin is the only Republican vying for the seat.

NC Senate: District 47

District 47 covers just a small portion of the eastern side of Haywood County, including Canton, Clyde, Crabtree and Fines Creek. The district extends along the northern border of Western North Carolina from Madison to Alleghany County.

Republican Ralph Hise from Mitchell County has represented the district since 2010 and will run for reelection again in 2026. Hise has no Republican competitor.

Congress

Incumbent Republican Chuck Edwards has represented WNC in Congress since 2022. A Hendersonville businessman and civic leader, Edwards previously served three terms in the NC Senate.

Adam Smith will challenge Edwards in the primary. Over nearly 17 years of military service, Adam deployed around the world on multiple tours and served in the Defense Intelligence Agency. Smith founded the nonprofit disaster aid organization Savage Freedom Relief Operations soon after Tropical Storm Helene, providing food, water, supplies and medical aid to people displaced by the storm.

District Court Judge: District 43

Republican Donna Forga of Clyde is running unopposed for reelection to her seat as Chief Judge.

==================================================================================

 "The Informed Citizen" is a Judeo-Christian conservative blog and website with a mission to provide information on the governance of our municipalities, counties, states, and country, enabling you, the voter, to make informed decisions at the ballot box.

To this end, "The Informed Citizen" publishes daily information that mainstream media either fails to provide or does so in a manner that aligns with the ideological narrative of the Socialist-Democrat Party.

If we are to retain our Constitutional Republic as envisioned by our Founding Fathers, we need the involvement and engagement of everyone. So, please consider joining this mission.

If you are interested in participating in informational conversations via "The Informed Citizen" Blog and Website, please visit americaninsanity.org to learn about "The Informed Citizen" and gain valuable insights into our communities' issues, and to subscribe to “The Informed Citizen.”

Together, our voices as Judeo-Christian conservatives will resonate more powerfully than ever.

Please share this post with your contacts. Everyone needs to be an informed citizen, knowledgeable about political activities that directly affect them and their families, so that they too can make informed decisions at the ballot box.