Republican Rivalry: How Two Republicans Look to Battle to Become Sullivan County’s New Mayor

In the past two decades, only two men have led Sullivan County. This May, the county of 163,759 people will select its first mayor since 2002 and potentially the first female mayor.

Since 2002, Sullivan County, Tennessee, has only elected two mayors: Richard Veneable served from 2002 to 2006 and 2014 to the present day, and Steve Godsey from 2006 to 2014.

Now, Sullivan County will elect a new mayor for the first time in 12 years. Two candidates have stepped up to the plate to see who will prevail on the Republican ticket for Sullivan County mayor. Early voting ended April 30. Registered voters can still vote in the Republican primary on May 5.

The winner of the Republican Primary will be the presumptive mayor of Sullivan County as there are no Democrats or Independents running against them.

Contributed//WCYB

Zane Vanover, the Sullivan County Commission vice chairman, and Angie Stanley, the vice-chairwoman of the Sullivan County Board of Education and former two-term county commissioner for district 7, are locked in a narrow battle for the Republican nomination for mayor of Sullivan County.

Originally, up until February 2026, this Republican primary was a three-way battle between Vanover, Stanley and Barry Brickey. However, this all changed with one decision. According to Slater Teague in his WJHL interview, he said that Brickey dropped out “less than 24 hours before the deadline to submit a petition to run.” As a result of this, Brickey immediately endorsed Vanover.

Stanley has also picked up numerous key endorsements from people such as Jeff Cassidy, the current Sullivan County sheriff, and Diana Harshbarger, district 1 representative in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Both candidates also hope to see higher voter turnout in this election, specifically from Gen Z and the younger generations. They hope to provide these generations with the ability to live and build a future here in the region.

Vanover stressed how much he values the younger generations and what role he would play in helping them as mayor.

Zane Vanover (Contributed)

“I worry very much about the future generations. We have to provide jobs in this county so that they do not have to move to places like Nashville or Chattanooga,” said Vanover.

He also added on the importance of his role and what his duty as mayor would entail.

“I believe as mayor of Sullivan County, one of your major responsibilities is to be an economic developer, and you have to sell your county to tourists so they can come here and spend their tax money so that we don’t have to. You also have to sell your county to developers who want to come and bring jobs into your county,” said Vanover.

Stanley emphasized how she plans to help the younger generations and entice them to live and stay within the county.

“I would like to see the younger generations move back to Sullivan County and to make that happen, we’ve got to make our housing more affordable. We cannot continue to raise property taxes and raise assessments if we want the younger generations to be able to afford a home,” said Stanley.

Both Stanley and Vanover demonstrated why they are running and that they have clear goals and visions for Sullivan County if they were to be elected to serve as mayor.

“I'm running for mayor of Sullivan County because I care about the people in Sullivan County. I care about the quality of life in Sullivan County,” said Vanover.

Vanover shared one of the core parts of his vision, the cost of living and why he believes that it must be brought down, and how costly it is for the county.

“I care about the cost of living in Sullivan County and we’ve got a vision for the future because of the biggest issues that we have in this county is our growth. We've got to have it and I tell people all the time that we either have to increase our tax base or we have to increase your tax rate,” he said.

He also said that increasing taxes can negatively impact residents and the entire county itself.

“We've got to increase our tax base by bringing in jobs and by bringing in more people to share in the burden,” said Vanover.

On the other hand, Stanley wants Sullivan County to be a place where families can grow and thrive while also making it an affordable place to reside.

“I’m running because I was born and raised here. My kids were born and raised here and I want Sullivan County to be a place where they want to move back when they graduate college, get married and have a family,” said Stanley.

Stanley said Sullivan County has a major problem that affects all people in their everyday lives: property taxes.

Angie Stanley (Contributed)

“We have a spending problem in our county, not a revenue problem, and people are suffering from the tax increases of the property assessments as they double and triple. When you have to sit here and choose between keeping your home, buying medicine or putting food on your table, that’s unacceptable to me,” said Stanley.

Another major issue in this race that is important to the constituents of Sullivan County is education.

Vanover described how impactful education is on Sullivan County as a whole.

“Education is the answer to all of our problems and when you can find one thing that solves so many problems, you need to invest in it. Education can help us better in high-paying jobs and increase our quality of life,” said Vanover.

Stanley also described the monumental impact that education has on Sullivan County, alongside what he said the current government has done to hinder and hurt its ability to help the county.

“Education is our number one economic driver and the last four years, our county commission has taken away $10.3 million from all three education systems. You can’t keep taking money away and expect to have a good education system,” said Stanley.

Both candidates have different visions about what should be done to make life better for the overall county and its residents. Both candidates rely heavily on their experience for their goals and desires for Sullivan County.

Vanover is a farmer as he owns and operates Cleek Farms, a former teacher and coach at Sullivan North, South and Central, civic leader and economic developer. He is a graduate of ETSU as he completed his B.S. in Biology and M.A. in Education Leadership & Policy Analysis. He believes that this experience, where he has seen Sullivan County from a multitude of angles, will help him lead the county to new heights and bring “grounded growth for Sullivan County,” according to his campaign website.

Stanley is a small business owner of Total Look Hair Salon in Kingsport, a mother and wife who “believes the government should work for the people --- not the political establishment.”

These personable traits, alongside her advanced history and experience in local politics, make Stanley believe she can bring “real conservative leadership for a better Sullivan County,” according to her campaign website.

Stanley has also led numerous other community improvement endeavors, including serving on the Sullivan South Community Chest and the United Way of Greater Kingsport Board of Directors.

With the Republican Primary Day approaching next week on Tuesday, May 5, the decision for who will be the next mayor of Sullivan County shifts into the hands of voters to decide which experienced candidate with a compelling vision and plan will lead Sullivan County into its next era of hope and growth.

Voter info can be found here.