CARROLL COUNTY, Tenn. — Chad Barnhart, who qualified to run for Carroll County Register of Deeds, announced Sunday that he is withdrawing from the race.
The circumstances surrounding his exit reveal oversight by the Carroll County Election Commission that raises questions extending beyond this year’s ballot.
Court records, state statutes, and Barnhart’s own public statements confirm the Election Commission failed to apply a Tennessee rights restoration requirement, one that had been explicitly communicated to county election commissions in writing in July 2023.
Not only did they fail to apply it this year, but also in 2024 when Barnhart was elected to Huntingdon’s City Council.
Barnhart announced his withdrawal in a Facebook video post Sunday evening. He explained the situation in his own words and took no personal blame for the oversight.
The Carroll County Election Commission has not yet responded to our inquiry, which was submitted over the weekend.
How the Story Came to Light
This story originated from a public candidate survey conducted by Carroll County Observer in February. One resident submitted the question: “Can felons legally hold public office?”, directing it at the Register of Deeds race.
That submission prompted a review of public court records.
The records confirm that Barnhart had pleaded guilty to at least one felony in 2012.
A court records search also revealed that Barnhart had filed a Petition for Restoration of Citizenship Rights on Friday, February 27, 2026, with a hearing scheduled before Circuit Court Judge Brent Bradberry.
The filing was made weeks after he had qualified for the Register of Deeds race in January, and that raised an immediate eligibility question.
The Law
Under Tennessee law, a person convicted of an infamous crime “shall be disqualified from qualifying for, seeking election to or holding a public office in this state, unless and until that person’s citizenship rights have been restored by a court of competent jurisdiction.” (TCA 40-20-114(a))
That language has appeared in Tennessee’s public office statute for decades.
A felony conviction strips a person of several rights, including the right to vote, serve on a jury, and hold public office. Each right is treated separately under Tennessee law, and restoring one does not automatically restore the others.
In 2006, the Tennessee legislature created the Certificate of Restoration of Voting Rights (COR), an administrative process designed to make it easier for eligible individuals to regain the right to vote.
However, the statute creating it clearly stated its purpose. It applied “only to restoration of the right of suffrage.”
Holding public office required a separate judicial process under a different part of the same chapter of law.
At least one county election commission in Tennessee, Tipton County, states this on its public website.
It reads, “The Certificate of Restoration allows you to vote, but if you want to run for public office, you will need a court order, which is a different process.”
The distinction became more evident July 2023, when the Tennessee Supreme Court decided Falls v. Goins, a case about whether a man who had his rights restored in Virginia could automatically vote in Tennessee.
The Court said no, and in its opinion decided that the 2006 voting rights statutes applied “only to restoration of the right of suffrage,” with all other citizenship rights, including the right to hold public office, governed by the judicial petition process.
Following that ruling, the state’s coordinator of elections issued guidance on July 21, 2023, making explicit that a court order or gubernatorial pardon was required before voting rights, let alone the right to hold public office, could be restored.
Carroll County’s Election Commission did not apply that requirement when Barnhart qualified for Huntingdon City Council in 2024, which came more than a year after the directive. It did not apply it when he qualified for Register of Deeds in January 2026.
Whether a COR ever satisfied the public office standard even before 2023 is a legal question this newspaper is not positioned to resolve, but what is documented is that the commission missed a requirement that had been explicitly communicated to county election officials in writing.
Barnhart’s Explanation and Withdrawal
In his Facebook video, Barnhart said he learned of the missing court order after the Tennessee Division of Elections contacted the Election Commission following his January qualification. He hired an attorney and was scheduled for an initial court proceeding on March 2. He identified Division of Elections official Beth Henry-Robertson as the person who helped him understand the new process.
Despite expressing confidence the proceeding would go in his favor, Barnhart said he chose to withdraw from the Register of Deeds race. He also explained that he will not pursue legal action against the Election Commission.
“As disheartening as this is, I’m not going to place blame on anybody,” he said. “There was a disconnect somewhere. I love the county I live in.”
He praised his opponent, Natalie McCullough Porter, and said he plans to seek office again in four years.
Barnhart also said in the video that he consulted Huntingdon’s town attorney, Robert T. Keeton III, who told him his Huntingdon City Council seat is unaffected. Questions about his council eligibility remain, given the circumstances of his eligibility in the 2024 election.
A Note on This Report
In his withdrawal video, Barnhart suggested that media coverage might “tell their version” of events. This news outlet wants to be transparent about how this story was reported.
This story originated from an anonymous question submitted through its editor’s own public candidate survey, not from any political opponent or personal source.
Before publishing, Carroll County Observer contacted Barnhart directly, informed him of the public records involved, and offered him a chance to respond on the record.
The account published here draws exclusively on public court records, Tennessee state statutes, official state training materials, and statements Barnhart made publicly in his own Facebook video.
This story is not about whether people with criminal records deserve second chances. Barnhart’s personal testimony suggests the answer is yes. This report is about whether a state procedural requirement was followed.
Carroll County Observer will continue to follow the court proceeding, the Election Commission’s response, and the broader question of whether the commission’s vetting process has affected other candidates in Carroll County.