THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED: WHY CONWAY MASON SHOULD HAVE SKIPPED THE BALLOT
There’s a sharp irony in watching both Tommy "Tomcat" Jones and former deputy Conway Mason ask Monroe County voters for positions of public trust—and watching both get turned away.
Had Mason stayed out of the limelight after leaving the department, he could have quietly prepared for his upcoming Rule 30 depositions in Berger v. Monroe County while public attention stayed on the former sheriff. Instead, running for Madisonville Alderman put his own warrant affidavit and judgment directly back in front of local voters—who decisively kept incumbents Chris Bowers and Danny Long in place.While former Sheriff Tommy "Tomcat" Jones exited office under a cloud of controversy, former deputy Conway Mason closed out his Madisonville Alderman bid with an election-night concession—even if the federal docket waiting for both of them remains unchanged.
Mason’s November Facebook post followed the traditional rhythm of small-town civic sportsmanship.Within hours of the polls closing, he congratulated his opponents by name, framed the outcome around democratic norms, and moved straight into practical community work—replying to a neighbor about preparing local ball fields for the upcoming spring season
In small towns like Madisonville, that kind of grace goes a long way toward lowering the local temperature. By stepping off the political stage cleanly rather than nursing grievances, Mason avoided compounding his ballot-box loss with lingering municipal friction. Still, there is a hard boundary between local social media goodwill and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
While Mason can put differences aside with Madisonville's elected board and turn his attention back to youth sports
Mason showed on November 3 that he knows how to take an electoral loss with basic civic courtesy
By MCNWW Staff
