Matt Teply, Cannon County administrator of elections, was one of six administrators to recently pass the state certification exam.

Secretary of State Tre Hargett congratulated Cannon County's Teply and five other administrators of elections who passed the exam.
The other administrators were:

Susan Hughes, Blount County Administrator of Elections
Peg Hamlett, Carroll County Administrator of Elections
Jill Davis, Cumberland County Administrator of Elections
Julieanne Hart, Gibson County Administrator of Elections
Chad Gray, Williamson County Administrator of Elections

"I'm very proud of these six hardworking election officials. We want all 95 counties to have certified election administrators, which gives Tennesseans confidence those running elections across the state are doing it fairly and in accordance with state law," Secretary Hargett said.

The accomplishment has a financial incentive, which means an administrator cannot be paid less than the certified pay rate for their respective county.
Participants must first complete a training process that covers 40 different topics related to election law.

The exam, which is administered by Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins, is a rigorous closed book, written assessment that can last up to three and a half hours. Questions, which are based on statutory requirements, range from voter registration to Election Day guidelines.