Mark Kephart hopes to bring a mix of local ties and global perspective to the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners.
Kephart grew up on Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians land and attended Murphy High School before joining the military when he was 17, after he graduated. He served as a military police officer for almost 35 years – including a five-year stint in Iraq – before retiring in 2018.
After a career helping keep others safe around the world, Kephart now has specific ideas about ways in which Cherokee County can be made safer. The Republican candidate is seeking the District 3 seat being vacated by Gary “Hippie” Westmoreland, who is not seeking re-election.
“There are some things I want to do to help law enforcement,” Kephart said. “When you go to a hotel or Airbnb or anything like that, you have to give them your information and ID.
“Why is it not that way for rental homes? I think that one little 3x5 card would do a lot to keep felons from other states out of our county.”
Kephart sees Ankr/Exponential Digital’s unenclosed crypto mines as a major issue in Cherokee County and believes local officials should stop the practice “by any means.” He would like to see a moratorium put into effect to address the problem.
“They could’ve enclosed it and used a water cooling system but it cost more money,” Kephart said. “They weren’t willing to do that. … If they aren’t willing to come in and be a part of the community, then they need to leave our community.
“The county needs to send them a letter (and say), ‘You’ve got two choices, you can soundproof that thing or you can load it up and get it out of here.’ ”
Kephart is in favor of a planning board to help avoid such unforeseen issues in the future. He said a board probably should consist of a building inspector, engineer, architect, representative of the DOT, someone from a power company and a couple of ordinary citizens.
“I’m all about a planning board,” he said. “The tribe has had a planning board for 30 years.”
Kephart and his wife have two adult daughters. He has a business degree of his own, while both of his daughters have master’s degrees.
“I’m a proponent of education,” Kephart said. “It opens doors for people, and it’s something no one can ever take away .”
He does not support the current high school consolidation plan and would prefer to see a new school built near Murphy High. He believes it will be difficult to get funding for the planned high school in Peachtree due to competition for grant funding and lawsuits the county is facing over past practices by the Department of Social Services. Regardless of the outcome of future facilities, Kephart believes students need to be educated in trade work, both for their own benefits and for the future of those industries.
“If we don’t do something, in 10 years there won’t be anybody left to build a house or lay a block or pour a piece of concrete,” Kephart said.
Kephart previously served on the executive board for the Hiwassee River Watershed Coalition and cares about preserving and taking advantage of the natural resources in the area. He pointed out that Cherokee County’s lone campground is closed, while neighboring Clay and Graham counties boast a total of more than a dozen campgrounds between the two.
Kephart also takes issue with the way board of commissioners’ meetings are structured.
He would like to revamp the meeting format to create more opportunities for the public to make informed comments about resolutions. Kephart prefers the method used by the Tribal Council.
“Whoever is presenting the resolution comes in and reads the resolution to the council,” Kephart said.
“Then they open it up for discussion among the people and they do that for every resolution. This allowing you three minutes to talk before the meeting and not hearing the resolution read and ask questions, it’s got to change.”
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