About 31,000 Greene Countians voted for president in November 2024. In May 2026, about 8,500 voted in the primary that picked the county mayor, who then had no opponent in August. That's a little more than one voter in four choosing the person who runs county government. The races closest to home get the fewest voters, which is exactly why a single vote counts for the most there.
This guide covers how to vote, who you're actually electing, and what each of those offices decides. GreeneTN is independent and nonpartisan: we don't endorse candidates, and every vote count here comes from the Greene County Election Commission's certified results.
Voting on Tuesday, November 3, 2026
- Early voting ends Thursday, October 29. Vote at the Greene County Election Commission, 311 CCU Blvd, Suite 1, Greeneville. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday.
- Election Day is Tuesday, November 3. Vote at your own precinct; find it on the state's GoVoteTN site or app. Polls close at 8 p.m., and anyone in line by then can still vote. Greene County polls opened at 9 a.m. at the last few elections; the Election Commission posts the official hours before Election Day.
- Bring a photo ID. A Tennessee driver license, U.S. passport or military ID all work, even if expired. A college student ID does not.
- Check your registration at the state's voter lookup. The deadline to register for this election was October 5.
What's on the ballot
- Governor of Tennessee
- U.S. Senate
- U.S. House, District 1
- Tennessee Senate, District 9, and Tennessee House, District 5
- Three amendments to the Tennessee Constitution: on denying bail for certain violent crimes, on banning a state property tax, and on crime victims' rights
- City of Tusculum commissioner (Tusculum residents only)
Read the full wording, including the amendments, on the county's sample ballot (PDF) before you go.
Local races decided by a handful of votes
These are real results from the May 5, 2026 primary in Greene County. Each County Commission district elects three commissioners, so the race that matters is the one for third place. In each case, a few friends, a church van or one family reunion could have changed the outcome.
- 8 votes decided the third Greene County Commission seat in District 7: 452 to 444. The three winners had no opponent in August.
- 16 votes decided the third seat in District 3: 658 to 642.
- 26 votes decided the third seat in District 4: 541 to 515. Those winners were unopposed in August, too.
- 265 votes decided the county mayor's race, 4,210 to 3,945, out of 8,500 cast. Nobody ran against the winner in August.
Compare that with the roughly 31,000 Greene Countians who voted for president in 2024. Fewer than three in ten of them picked the county mayor.
Most local offices are decided before November
Many people only vote in November, but in Tennessee that's mainly state and federal races. County offices are elected in even-numbered years on a different schedule: a county primary in May and the county general election in August. Greeneville, Mosheim and Baileyton hold their town elections in August too.
In Greene County, the May primary often settles things. On the August 2026 ballot, the county mayor, sheriff, trustee, county clerk, register of deeds, circuit court clerk and road superintendent each had one name and no opponent. If you skipped May, those choices were already made.
Town races are often uncontested too. In August 2026, Greeneville's two Ward 1 City Council seats, its two Ward 2 city school board seats and Mosheim's two alderman seats each drew exactly two candidates, so everyone who ran won. Baileyton had two alderman seats on the ballot and nobody qualified for either. Local government depends on neighbors willing to put their name on a ballot as much as on neighbors who vote.
Who runs Greene County
The University of Tennessee's County Technical Assistance Service (CTAS) trains and advises county officials across the state. Here's how it describes the pieces, applied to Greene County.
- The County Commission is the county's legislative body. Greene County has 21 commissioners, three from each of seven districts, and they meet in public on the third Monday of each month. Each year they adopt the county budget and levy the property tax to pay for it, deciding how much goes to schools, roads, the sheriff and the jail. CTAS notes the property tax is the one major tax a commission can raise without a referendum. When a county office falls vacant, the commission fills it until the next election.
- The county mayor is the county's chief executive and, in CTAS's words, its chief financial officer. The mayor has a major role in building the budget and runs the county's general business, but shares executive power with the other elected officials below.
- Separately elected officials answer to voters, not to the mayor. The Tennessee Constitution creates the sheriff (law enforcement and the jail), the trustee (collects property taxes), the county clerk (car tags, marriage licenses), the register of deeds (land records) and the assessor of property (values your property for taxes), each for a four-year term. Greene County voters also elect the circuit court clerk and the road superintendent, who looks after about 1,180 miles of county roads. The assessor is elected in the off years (next in 2028); the rest were on the 2026 ballot.
- The county school board runs Greene County Schools and is elected by district. It writes the school budget, but the County Commission approves the total: if it doesn't agree, it sends the budget back with the amount it will fund.
Who runs your town
If you live inside town limits, you have a second local government. The University of Tennessee's Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS) advises Tennessee's cities and towns. As MTAS puts it, a town exists to give its residents a higher level of service than the county does: police and fire protection, sewer, zoning and building codes, parks, trash pickup, streets, and control of nuisances. Most Tennessee towns pay for that with a city property tax on top of the county's.
- Greeneville has a council-manager government: a mayor elected town-wide and four City Council members, two from each of the town's two wards, serving staggered four-year terms. (Until recently it was called the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.) The council hires a city manager, who runs the town day to day and presents the budget. Greeneville also elects a water commissioner and the board of its own school system, Greeneville City Schools.
- Tusculum has a manager-commission government: three elected commissioners, who choose a mayor and vice mayor from among themselves and hire a city manager. Tusculum's elections are held in November.
- Mosheim and Baileyton each elect a mayor and a board of aldermen in August. Their next town elections are in 2028.
If you live outside those four towns, as much of the county does, the County Commission and county officials are your local government. That makes the commission race on your ballot the one that touches your daily life most.
Staying involved between elections
Voting is the start. City Council and County Commission meetings are open to the public. We publish plain-English recaps of recent meetings with links to the official minutes on our local government page, and you can search years of past County Commission records in the County Records Archive.
Sources
- Greene County Election Commission: election information and certified results (Nov 5 2024, May 5 2026 and Aug 6 2026 elections)
- UT County Technical Assistance Service (CTAS)
- UT Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS)
- Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Elections
Good to know
Voting in Greene County: quick answers
- Where do I vote early in Greene County, TN?
- Early voting is at the Greene County Election Commission office, 311 CCU Blvd, Suite 1, Greeneville. Any registered Greene County voter can vote there during the early voting period, which runs from 20 days to 5 days before an election. On Election Day itself you vote at your own assigned precinct.
- What ID do I need to vote in Tennessee?
- A government-issued photo ID, such as a Tennessee driver license, a photo ID from the Tennessee Department of Safety, a U.S. passport, a military ID, or a Tennessee handgun carry permit with your photo. Expired IDs are accepted. College student IDs, city or county IDs, and out-of-state IDs are not.
- When are Greene County's local elections?
- Tennessee elects most county offices, including the county mayor and County Commission, every four years in the years we elect a governor (2026, 2030): a county primary in May and the county general election on the first Thursday in August. Greeneville, Mosheim and Baileyton hold their town elections in August too. November is for state and federal races, plus Tusculum's city election.
- Who sets the property tax rate in Greene County?
- The Greene County Commission adopts the county budget and sets the county property tax rate each year, including how much local money goes to Greene County Schools. If you live inside a town, that town's governing board can set a separate city tax rate on top.
- How close do local elections get here?
- Very close. In the May 2026 primary, Greene County Commission seats were decided by 8, 16 and 26 votes, and the county mayor's race by 265 votes out of 8,500 cast. Those winners then had no opponent, or no close one, in August.