Another candidate has officially joined the race for Greene County Mayor in 2026.
Brett Purgason told Radio Greeneville News this morning he had submitted his qualifying papers to the Election Commission today and was notified later in the morning that he had been certified to run.
Purgason, the past Greene County Republican Party Chair, opposed Kevin Morrison in a crowded eight candidate race in the 2018 Republican primary. Morrison went on to win the primary in which Purgason finished second, 106 votes behind Morrison. Morrison went on to win the August General Election and his first term in office. Earlier , Purgason made another unsuccessful run for Mayor in the 2014 election, losing to David Crum.
Current Mayor Kevin Morrison, who is seeking a third term in office, qualified earlier to seek reelection.
Josh Arrowood, who announced his plans last year to run for Mayor, had yet to submit his qualifying petition as of news time today.
The qualifying deadline for the May 5th primary is at Noon on Thursday, February 19th.
Earlier this afternoon, Purgason sent the following information to Radio Greeneville concerning his background and reasons for running.
PURGASON BACKGROUND
I am a Christian, conservative, Republican in that order, and in that order of importance.
I am a life-long resident of Greene County, and I reside in the Mosheim community.
I am a graduate of First Church of God Christian School, Walters State community college, and Tusculum University.
I am an active member of First Christian Church where I serve in the music ministry.
Experience:
– I have been in the East Tennessee commercial/ industrial contracting industry for over 30 years.
– Budgeted, negotiated and managed small to hundreds-of-million-dollar projects.
– I have managed most aspects of business including: business and health insurance, health and safety, human resources management, sales and marketing, general management.
Service to our community:
Life-Member of Mosheim Volunteer Fire Department where I serve as Senior Captain and Treasurer.
Immediate Past Chairman and former Treasurer of the Greene County Republican Party
Former service as a member of the Tusculum College Alumni Executive Board, Freewill Baptist Family Ministries Executive Council, the Greene County Partnership’s Board of Directors
Chairman of the Town of Greeneville Standards Review Board
Founding board member of Tennesseans for Conservative Action
PURPOSE:
I have decided to seek the office of Greene County Mayor based on the belief that government should be transparent, limited, fiscally responsible, and accountable.
I will serve the people of Greene County with honesty and integrity, work with the County Commission and other municipalities to make sure Greene County is THE Best place to live and work and I will work to ensure that our county government is smarter and more efficient while maintaining the lowest possible tax rate for the smallest, most efficient county government.
I will be honest and open about the business of Greene County to you, the taxpayers.
