GOP conflict erupts in email between chairman, Mayor Carr about Property Assessor seat

A Rutherford County political conflict emerged recently in shared email exchanges between two Republican leaders about two competing GOP candidates, facing off in the Property Assessor primary March 5.

In an email posted to social media, Rutherford County Republican Party Chairman Austin Maxwell purports County Mayor Joe Carr is dissatisfied with incumbent Property Assessor Rob Mitchell's leadership as property assessor.

The email comes on the heels of Carr voicing concerns about the hiring processes within the Property Assessor's Office under Mitchell's leadership.

Mitchell faces opponent Virgil Gammon, a former Rutherford County Commissioner and previous chief deputy of the Sheriff's Office.

"Why would a sitting county mayor call up the chairman of the GOP in October of 2023 and seek out advice on candidates he could recruit to run against an incumbent Republican property assessor because Rob Mitchell was driving him crazy?" Maxwell wrote in the email to Carr.

"I believe you owe the voters and other officials an honest answer as to why you undertook the recruitment resulting in Virgil Gammon running for office of property assessor this election cycle," added Maxwell, who's also an elected member of the Murfreesboro City Council.

"What is it that you hope to gain and achieve by undertaking this? I can only assume that Mr. Mitchell has voiced opposition to some of your positions & actions and therefore this is political payback."

Maxwell also shared the communication with Rutherford's elected officials; Eric Hennessee, the mayor's chief of staff; and Scott Golden, chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party.

Rental taxes to senior exemptions: Rutherford County property assessor candidates sound off

Mayor criticizes property assessor's hiring process

The mayor replied back to Maxwell with the following:

"Since becoming Rutherford County mayor, I have received numerous complaints pertaining to Mr. Rob Mitchell in the property assessor's office, especially during the last several months," Carr said. "These complaints have been filed with the appropriate investigative authorities, and as such, I cannot comment further at this time."

Carr recently shared with The Daily News Journal that he disagrees with a recent hire and the hiring process in the Property Assessor's Office.

The new hire is a family member of Maxwell.

Carr said he believes all hires "should follow the Human Resources applicant process."

"It always concerns me when any department with the county sets out a process to hire somebody and does not follow that process," Carr said. "That’s why we have a Human Resources Department to ensure we follow a process that is fair to all applicants."

Rutherford County Human Resources previously rated the hired applicant as being unqualified for the initial job notice, designated as "Administrative Support II," because the hire didn't meet the requirement for having at least least three years of experience for the position, according to public records obtained by The Daily News Journal.

The January job notice had 26 applicants, and HR rated 16 to be qualified. Mitchell after hiring the applicant directed HR to change the job description to "data analyst."

The property assessor hired the applicant with an annual pay of $40,504 under the data analyst title, a salary range more than the administration II job posting, which starts at $37,616 for meeting the minimum qualifications. The pay for a qualified applicant with five years of paid experience for the administrative position is $40,369, HR records show.

The new hire will make slightly more than Mitchell's lowest paid employee in an Administrative Support II position with an annual pay of $40,322.

The property assessor by law can hire whomever he likes and decide on the pay for the applicant regardless of going through the county's HR application process, according to state statute. Meanwhile, some other county departments use the standard HR process.

The county's standard HR application process includes a government office interviewing all applicants initially determined to be qualified for the job based on the hiring office's specifications before interviewing other applicants.

HR records as of Feb. 2 showed no digital notice that any of the recent Administrative Support II applicants were interviewed.

"We follow our normal process," Mitchell previously said to the DNJ. "We have hired many people in the past and have only interviewed one or two people, just as many other offices may do. To my recollection, the last three people prior to this hire we have only interviewed the person we hired."

Reaction to email

Carr said what Maxwell asserted in the email last week was factually incorrect.

"I would have thought he’d contact me privately first," Carr said.

Maxwell provided the following comments about his email and the mayor's reply to The Daily News Journal:

“My statement speaks for itself," Maxwell said. "In two previous terms as chairman of the GOP, neither (former) Mayor Ernest Burgess nor (former) Mayor Bill Ketron ever contacted me asking me to find a candidate to run against a sitting Republican. Nor did they ever call and seek advice on candidates they could find to run against a sitting Republican."

Mitchell declined to comment on Maxwell's email.

Election 2024: Two Rutherford school board candidates vie for Zone 6 open seat

Gammon said Maxwell should have communicated privately with Carr rather than share an email with others.

"I don’t know where Austin is coming from," Gammon said. "He brought my name up, which I do not understand."

Gammon said he'd been thinking about running for property assessor independent of Carr.

"He found out I was interested in it," Gammon said. "We talked. I told him I was thinking about it."

Board of Education election: Vaught, Rourke compete in GOP primary for Rutherford County Zone 2 school board seat

Gammon said he talked to family and friends before deciding to campaign for the property assessor seat.

"I made the decision on my own, 100%," Gammon said. "I saw there was a cause."

Gammon mentioned wanting the Property Assessor's Office to follow the county's pay plan for employees and Human Resources Department process for hiring.

"That way nobody gets special treatment," Gammon said. "The employees are not paid the proper way."

Who's campaigning in 2024: 18 candidates qualify for Rutherford County and Murfreesboro offices

Politics sometimes can cost friendships, Gammon said.

"I consider Austin a friend. He and Joe I thought were friends," Gammon said. "To me, it opens Pandora's Box."

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.

2024 Election dates

• March 5: Primary for U.S. President, Rutherford County property assessor and highway superintendent, and seats for the county and Murfreesboro school boards

• Aug. 1: election for county and Murfreesboro offices and primaries for state and federal offices

• Nov. 5: Election Day for president, and other offices for federal, state, Smyrna, La Vergne and Eagleville governments

Source: Rutherford County Election Commission

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: GOP conflict erupts over email exchanges between chairman & Mayor Carr