Vaught, Vaughn, Tidwell and Maxwell win to join all GOP Rutherford County school board

Republicans Stan Vaught and Butch Vaughn won their elections Thursday to join the Rutherford County School Board.

The two will join the seven-member school board in September.

Incumbent Republicans Caleb Tidwell and Claire Maxwell won reelection.

The four winners will be part of an all Republican school board for the first time since the state permitted partisan elections for these seats in 2022.

Vaught won the Zone 2 seat to replace retiring board member Coy Young. As of 9 p.m. with 30 of 30 voting centers reporting, Vaught captured 1,497 votes (60.85%),while independents Robert Brooks was runner up with 749 votes (30.45%) and John Duncan was third with 200 votes (8.13%).

"I appreciate the confidence the voters in Zone 2 have put in me," Vaught said. "I've got big shoes to fill taking Coy Young's place and want to thank him for his 12 years of public service."

Vaught said he looks forward to working with Schools Director James 'Jimmy') Sullivan and the rest of the board "to create the best schools in the state."

"I'm excited," Vaught said. "I'm excited for education in our county and look forward to working for the entire county and each school. I will advocate for students, teachers, bus drivers and taxpayers to create efficient and effective education opportunities in our schools."

Vaughn, a retired principal for Rutherford County at Central Middle, Blackman Middle and Oakland High, was unopposed in the Aug. 1 election for the Zone 6 seat after winning in the March 5 GOP primary. He'll be replacing Shelia Bratton, the retiring chairwoman of the board.

Vaughn supported Vaught joining the board because of Vaught's experience with budgets as a former elected member of the Rutherford County Commission. Vaught is also the current chairman of the county's Public Building Authority that has overseen construction of public health and safety buildings with combined fire and ambulance stations. Vaught also owns and operates a farm in the rural Milton County on the county's far northeast side, is a longtime real estate auctioneer and manages two real estate offices.

"He'll be an asset to the board," Vaughn said after the election.

Tidwell won reelection in Zone 3 with 2,337 votes (58.94%). Democrat Tiffany Fee was runner up with 1,360 votes (34.30%), and independent Lorri Johnson was third with 268 votes (6.76%).

Tidwell, a former board vice chairman, previously won in 2022 as a Republican to complete a term former board member Lisa Moore won before she resigned in 2021 .

Maxwell, the board's vice chairwoman, won her second term after running unopposed in both Thursday's election and the March 5 Republican primary for her Zone 5 seat.

The Rutherford County Election Commission will be certifying the Aug. 1 election results during a 5 p.m. meeting Aug. 12.

Reach reporter Scott Broden with news tips or questions by emailing him at sbroden@dnj.com. To support his work with The Daily News Journal , sign up for a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Vaught, Vaughn, Tidwell and Maxwell win to join all GOP Rutherford County school board