Image Credit: Williamson County Republican Party & Canva
Press Release –
(Franklin, TN – August 18th, 2026) – The Williamson County Republican Party (WCRP) Chairman, Steve Hickey issues the following statement in response to the August 6th Williamson County general election. This statement was previously published in the August 17th county party newsletter.
The County General Election is behind us; it’s time to focus on the November General Election. Before we do so, we must address some concerns about this past election.
First, we must acknowledge that Democrats won two seats in District 10–a county commission seat and a school board seat. While this is a point of concern and a wake-up call for all Republicans to treat every election as critical, it’s important to put this into context.
For the first time in recent memory, our GOP County Executive Committee went far beyond simply writing checks. Yes, we provided direct contributions to candidates seeking our support in contested races, but we did far more. We funded pre-early voting mailers in every contested district. This was augmented by two rounds of text message campaigns. We further ran two rounds of ringless voicemail. We added door knockers to at-risk Districts 6, 8, 10, and 11 and responded to candidates who asked for, and appeared to need, additional support with more direct contributions. We then evaluated voting numbers after the first several days of early voting and prioritized additional resources in the form of a second mailer to Districts 5, 8, 10, and 11; a second round of door knockers in District 10; more direct contributions to campaigns; and finally, a boosted social media ad buy during the week before Election Day in Districts 3, 5, 8, 10, and 11.
That level of party effort has not been the norm in Williamson County, but underscores the GOP’s commitment to electing Republicans and the renewed, active presence of Democrat voters in our county.
This strategy appears to have paid off. Registered voters in our county grew only 2.7 percent between August 2022 and August 2026. In the large majority of county commission and school board races, Republican vote totals grew by considerably more than that. We turned out more Republicans than simple population growth can explain. That is the result of candidate work and party work.
It is important to note that several other red counties around the state similarly experienced Democrat gains far exceeding our own–most notably Montgomery County that saw its commission flip to blue and Knox County which has seen a steady erosion of Republican support since Mayor Glenn Jacobs’ 66-34% 2018 win (the Republican nominee won a tight race 52-48% this cycle). This suggests this phenomena was not exclusive to Williamson County and perhaps indicative of a macro trend in Tennessee.
It’s a sobering trend Republicans must pay close attention to and continue to address in future elections.
District 10 has been drifting left for multiple cycles—containing the county’s single precinct that backed Kamala Harris for President in 2024, alongside several precincts that supported Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn in the recent TN-07 Congressional special election. Early-voting data showed a clear pattern of crossover voting: voters who pulled a Republican primary ballot yet voted Democrat down-ballot in the local races.
And we cannot ignore the friendly fire. Outgoing Republican school board members used their positions and platforms to attack or undercut Republican nominees. Eric Welch (R, District 10) used his official Williamson County Schools Facebook page to coordinate with the far-left Williamson Strong PAC multiple, repeated attacks on Elliott Franklin (R nominee, District 10). Jay Galbreath (R, District 6) endorsed a Democrat-aligned Independent against our Republican incumbent in District 8 — the second time he has done so. I formally requested the TNGOP strip both men of their Republican bona fides.
Finally, certain Republican activists and groups circulated “Vote Republican” lists that conspicuously omitted Elliott Franklin and other Republican nominees. That is not unity; that is sabotage.
Despite all of it, Republicans still hold the vast majority of offices in this county. Andy Marshall won the mayor’s race decisively. Other county level Republican nominees swept with 98 percent of the vote. Most commission and school board seats remain in Republican hands.
A trusted friend told me that critics can be divided into two camps: the reasonable & the unreasonable. The reasonable seek to improve the operation through constructive advice; the unreasonable are never going to be happy, regardless of what you do. During my time as Chairman, I’ve encountered both types. I especially appreciate those loyal Republican colleagues whose hard work and helpful suggestions have made our party stronger.
We hope this report sheds light on the fact that the Williamson County Republican Party delivered more organized support to its nominees during the August 6th Election than any recent board before it. To be certain, there is work to do. Our board continues to welcome constructive input from our members as we work to elect Republicans in Williamson County.
About the WCRP
The Williamson County Republican Party is the conservative heart of Middle Tennessee and the largest, most active county Republican party in the state.
2 Responses
The war never ends and the next skirmish we will experience in Williamson County is the county Republican Party reorganization meeting in which the rule-or-ruin crowd that is highly organized and determined to gain control of the county party will almost certainly be back with its rule-or-ruin antics. Conservatives should be prepared to physically show-up at the meeting to vote down the not-so-conservative rule-or-ruin slate of candidates once again. Like so many not-so-conservative Republicans, the slate will be sponsored by an organization that was crafty enough to call itself the “Williamson County Conservatives”, of course.
As usual, the GOP loves to play it safe. Do the bare minimum and never ruffle any feathers. When are you going to find some testosterone and call out the RINOs destroying the party, end crossover voting, and put pressure on the state SEC to block out-of-state money?