NASHVILLE, TN — Republican lawmakers in Tennessee passed their state House map on Wednesday, finishing the final task in their once-a-decade state legislative and congressional redistricting work.
The Senate vote sends the House plan to Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who is expected to sign all three new maps.
What it means for Clarksville
State House: Montgomery County will for the first time have three dedicated state House of Representative members. Previously, the western side of the county split Rep. Jay Reedy with Houston and Humphreys County as part of District 74. The new-to-us District 75 will cover the west side of Clarksville-Montgomery County. The other two districts are 67, with Rep. Jason Hodges, D-Clarksville, and 68, with Rep. Curtis Johnson, R-Clarksville, who chaired the House Select Committee on Redistricting.
U.S. House: Part of Republican Rep. Mark Green’s 7th District will shift east to include a large part of Nashville-Davidson County, which will be divided between Districts 5, 6 and 7. What this means for Green in the long term remains to be seen, as the new district lines will include a large part of Nashville’s population, both as voters and as potential future candidates for the seat.
State Senate: The state Senate seat, District 22, will shrink to include only Montgomery County, concentrating the efforts of whoever is in that role to focus on Clarksville. State Sen. Bill Powers, R-Clarksville, is the current state senator. Previously, the district also included Stewart and Houston Counties, which will now become part of the large, rural District 24.
What it means for Tennessee
The House plan puts Democratic incumbents in the same district twice and Republican incumbents are paired once, not including lawmakers leaving office. On the Democratic side, Reps. London Lamar and Torrey Harris would be in the same Memphis district and Reps. Gloria Johnson and Sam McKenzie would be in the same Knoxville district. Meanwhile, GOP Reps. Jerry Sexton and Rick Eldridge would be in the same district that includes Grainger County and part of Hamblen County.
Democrats argue the state House map dilutes the power of minority voters, particularly in how it divides up Memphis and Rutherford County, which includes suburbs of Nashville, a city and region that boomed since the last census. The map splits 30 counties, the maximum permitted for the state House.
Republicans contend their maps will withstand any court challenges. The GOP has supermajorities in both the state House and Senate. Lawmakers have already passed state Senate and U.S. House maps.
What it means for Nashville
The congressional plan has drawn scrutiny for splitting fast-growing Nashville three ways, and prompted longtime Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper of Nashville to announce he won’t run again. The redraw makes Democrats the underdog to hold Cooper’s seat, which is one of two Democratic seats out of Tennessee’s nine in the U.S. House.
The state Democratic Party has pledged to file a lawsuit over the U.S. House map and others may join, though there are significant legal hurdles for those lining up to sue. Cooper said he “explored every possible way, including lawsuits, to stop the gerrymandering and to win one of the three new congressional districts that now divide Nashville,” but determined “there’s no way, at least for me in this election cycle, but there may be a path for other worthy candidates.”
The redrawn congressional seat, which extends from sections of Nashville through five other counties, has several Republicans mulling a run.
Republican video producer Robby Starbuck, who has U.S. Sen. Rand Paul’s endorsement, is already running.
The same day Cooper announced he wouldn’t run again, former President Donald Trump on Tuesday hailed a potential candidacy by Morgan Ortagus, who served as State Department spokesperson in his administration. Trump promised “my Complete and Total Endorsement if she decides to run.”
Former Tennessee House Speaker Beth Harwell has expressed interest, as has National Guard Brig. Gen. Kurt Winstead. Another name being floated is Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles, who had been rumored as a possible primary opponent to Gov. Lee this year. Other names are likely to pop up, as well.
The Democratic side is less clear. Odessa Kelly, a Black gay community organizer from Nashville, had been running for Cooper’s seat, and says she is now assessing what her next steps will be. She would live in one of the other two Nashville districts, though congressional candidates and members are not required to live in the district where they run or serve.
Jonathan Matisse of the Associated Press in Nashville Chris Smith of Clarksville Now contributed to this report.