Democrats give nod to Graham

By DAN KEGLEY/Staff

John Graham will be the Smyth County Democratic Party nominee on the Jan. 12 ballot for the special called election to fill the office of clerk of the Smyth County Circuit Court, according to party chairman Richard Walker.
Graham was nominated Saturday, Oct. 10, at the Democratic Caucus at Northwood High School.
“We filled the building,” Walker said. About 645 participated with “seven candidates trying to get the nomination. John Graham was the victorious one. He’ll be our candidate.”
According to Walker, there was standing room only in the auditorium he said “was filled and people were standing around the walls.”
They heard the candidates talk about their qualifications with each given five minutes to sway the assembly’s vote. “Then we had one vote and declared the winner.”
Vote counts by candidate were not made public, Walker said.
Graham, a Marion native, is a full-time attorney. He has practiced law since graduation from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1999. He is currently the Commissioner of Accounts for Smyth County, an attorney “commissioned by the Circuit Court to oversee” actions of trustees in the settling of estates and who is responsible for “approving inventories and accountings” in estate settlements, the circuit court clerk’s Web site said.
Graham has been a United Methodist pastor since graduation from seminary in 1995. He pastors three small churches in the Chilhowie, Thomas Bridge and Laurel Springs communities.
“One of the most important duties of the clerk of court is to probate wills, assisting folks who are often grieving the death of a loved one,” Graham said in an earlier statement. “As a lawyer with probate experience, I have the legal knowledge to assist people well, and as an ordained minister, I will cherish the opportunity to be of service at such critical times.”
Graham and his wife, Beth, have three children in the Smyth County school system. 
Robert Odum will represent the Republican Party on the Jan. 12 ballot for the special called election brought about by the death of Jimmy Warren, 77, in August. Warren was two years into his sixth term of office. Circuit court clerk terms are for eight years. The term expires Dec. 31, 2015.