By Shannon McFarlin News Director
Paris, Tenn.–Members of the Henry County Election Commission asked that a request for a determination of former County Mayor candidate Catherine Herrera’s residency status be sent to State Elections Coordinator Mark Goins for a determination.
The request was made by Commission Member James Poe after a question from Paul McDade of Whitlock at Monday’s busy special meeting of the Election Commission.
In April, the Elections Commission disqualified Herrera from running for County Mayor by a vote of 4-1. The vote came at the end of a lengthy public hearing on challenges to Herrera’s candidacy which were filed by County Commissioners Marty Visser and Ralph Wiles and local minister Carlton Gerrell. The hearing was the first-of-its-kind for Henry County.
McDade told the commission, “You need to follow up” on the issue. “Nothing in any of the supporting evidences she gave us established residence in Henry County.” Either her intent to run for public office represents mortgage fraud or misrepresentation, he said.
Poe said considering the amount of posts on social media after the hearing, he was surprised “that only one person showed up” to today’s meeting.
Commission Member Art Smith said, “We need a definitive answer” and Green said she would forward the request to the state and copy it to County Attorney Rob Whitfield.
In other business:
–Green provided an update from the county building and grounds committee. “They discussed what is going to happen with our office moving forward,” she said. Current plans are to move the Election Commission, County Archives and County Veterans Services into the former Tennessee Rehabilitation building on Hwy. 79S.
“It’s looking more and more positive that is where we’ll be going,” she said, but committee members have indicated they probably won’t make a definite decision until 2027.
Due to unsafe conditions at some of the older county offices, the county is building a new county office building on Hwy. 79S for some offices while other offices will be moved to other county-owned buildings.
–Green updated the commission on her move for a new separate website for the Election Commission. The county website is not user-friendly and her office receives a lot of complaints about it.
“My number 1 goal is to get the word out” about the August 6, 2026 election. She said she posts information every Tuesday on the Election Commission Facebook page. “Facebook is a big key, but we need our own website.”
As per a new bill in the state legislature, starting in June 2027, the office will no longer be publishing its legal notices in the local newspaper. “That’s a big reason for our own website. We can post our notices and post the ballot on there and not spend a fortune.”
–The office will again be publicizing the upcoming election on a billboard that rotates messages. It will be on for four weeks starting the first of July and cost $1,200. “That’s a little more expensive than last time. It’s a good tool for us.”
–The commission approved the 2026-2027 budget.
–The commission office received a lot of calls Friday and Monday after the last Paris City Commission meeting. People are wondering about running for city office and how to remove city officials. “We’ve gotten a lot of calls. Apparently there were a lot of feathers ruffled at the meeting and people are wanting to know about the next municipal election,” she said.