WREG

AUGUST 1, 2024 TENNESSEE ELECTION GUIDE

By David Royer,

11 days ago

The August 1 election will be a general election/primary combination. Each county in Tennessee and some municipalities will hold a mid-term general election. Tennessee is also holding a state and federal primary for the November general election.

SHELBY COUNTY

GENERAL SESSIONS COURT CLERK

Democrat Tami Sawyer and Republican Lisa Arnold are running for the only countywide office on the ballot.

Sawyer is a former Shelby County Commissioner and community activist. She defeated the incumbent Joe Brown during the March Democratic primary.

Arnold has worked in the General Sessions and Criminal Court Clerk’s offices for more than 30 years. She held a variety of positions – including Deputy Court Clerk and Manager of Finance.

MEMPHIS-SHELBY COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD

There are five seats on the Memphis-Shelby County School Board up for grabs this election cycle.

DISTRICT 2 – NORTH MEMPHIS, BINGHAMPTON, BERCLAIR, RALEIGH

MSCS Board Chairwoman Althea Greene is being challenged by two candidates – E rnest Gillespie and Natalie McKinney .

Greene was first elected to the school board in 2019. She is a retired educator and the senior pastor at Real Life Ministries.

Gillespie is a pastor who currently serves as a special project coordinator for MSCS. McKinney is the co-founder of Whole Child Strategies and has served as the director of policy and legislative planning at both Shelby County Schools and Memphis City Schools.

DISTRICT 3 – FRAYSER, RALEIGH, NORTHAVEN, SHELBY FOREST

Longtime MSCS Board Member Stephanie Love is facing three challengers – Jesse Jeff, Ozell Pace and Angela Rogers – as she goes for her fourth term in office.

Love was first elected back in 2014. She has also served on the Frayser Neighborhood Council.

Jeff is an educator and a Marine Corps veteran who previously ran for the District 3 seat back in 2020. He also ran for Tennessee House in District 86 back in 2018.

Pace is the site operations manager for Open Arms Care. He previously worked for Youth Villages.

Rogers is a board member at Christ Community Health Services.

DISTRICT 4 – SOUTHEAST MEMPHIS AND SOUTHEAST SHELBY CO.

Five candidates are running the race for the open District 4 seat that has been held by Kevin Woods for the last 12 years.

James Bacchus is a retired educator and the former principal of Hamilton High School. He ran for Shelby County Commission in District 12 in 2022.

Alvin Crook currently works as an officer for MLGW. He previously ran for the SCS Board in District 9 back in 2018. He also was a candidate for Tennessee House District 85 back in 2020.

Eric Harris is a former teacher and administrator with Memphis City Schools and the Achievement School District. He currently is the president of the JESSRAN Corporation.

Tamarques Porter is a business owner and serves on the Tennessee Higher Education Prison Initiative board. He previously ran for the District 4 seat back in 2020.

Anecia Washington is a dyslexia therapist and former educator. She serves as vice president of the Tennessee Chapter of the Academic Language Therapy Association.

DISTRICT 5 – CORDOVA, EADS, FISHERVILLE

Current District 5 Board Member Mauricio Calvo is being challenged by two candidates – Audrey Elion and Sable Otey .

Calvo – who was appointed to the District 5 seat by the Shelby County Commission in 2023 – also serves as the leader of Latino Memphis.

Elion is a youth advocate and serves as the co-director of Sowing Justice, an environmental advocacy group.

Otey is a business owner and former teacher.

DISTRICT 7 – SOUTH MEMPHIS, OAKHAVEN, HICKORY HILL, PARKWAY VILLAGE

Current District 7 Board Member Frank Johnson is being challenged by four candidates – Chavez Donelson, Danielle Huggins, Towanna Murphy and Jason Sharif .

Johnson was appointed to the Memphis-Shelby County School Board by the County Commission in 2022. He is a former educator and a community activist. He previously ran for the District 5 seat back in 2020 and was a candidate for Memphis City Council in 2019.

Donelson is a community activist in the Alcy-Ball community.

Huggins is an elementary school teacher with MSCS. She is also involved with the Alcy-Ball Development Corporation.

Murphy is a radio and television personality and the CEO of Project Let’s Read. She ran for Memphis City Council in 2023.

Sharif is the founder and executive director of Respect the Haven. He is also a former MSCS teacher and worked for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.

MUNICIPAL RACES

ARLINGTON

There are six races on the ballot in Arlington on August 1. Mayor Mike Wissman is running unopposed. Aldermen Larry Harmon, Jr. and Jeff McKee are also running unopposed – but there is a contested race for the Position 2 seat between Dwight Barker and Jordan Hinders .

There are also two seats up for election on the Arlington Municipal School Board. Incumbent Lyle Wilson Conley is being challenged by Betsy McEntire for the Position 2 seat. Courtney Barnes is running unopposed for the Position 4 seat.

BARTLETT

The only race on the ballot in Bartlett is for Municipal Court Judge in Division 2. Judge Dan Brown is running unopposed. He’s been on the bench since 2010.

GERMANTOWN

Voters in Germantown will be choosing a new judge for Municipal Court – Division 1. Rhea Clift and Justin Gee are running to replace Judge Kevin Patterson – who was appointed to the position in 2022 following the retirement of longtime Judge Raymond Clift.

Judge Clift’s daughter, Rhea, has served as a prosecutor in Shelby County for more than 30 years. She currently serves as Bartlett’s chief prosecutor.

Gee is a defense attorney with the firm of Wagerman Katzman.

TENNESSEE PRIMARY

U.S. SENATE

Sen. Marsha Blackburn is being challenged by Tres Wittum in the GOP primary.

Blackburn was first elected back in 2018 after serving 15 years in the U.S. House, representing Tennessee’s 7th District.

Wittum previously ran for Congress in Tennessee’s 5th District in 2022 and has served as a policy aide for the GOP leadership in the Tennessee Senate.

There are four candidates running in the Democratic primary – Marquita Bradshaw , Lola Brown, Gloria Johnson and Civil Miller-Watkins .

Bradshaw is a Memphis native – who ran against Sen. Bill Hagerty in 2020. She is a community activist and has served as the environmental justice chair of the Sierra Club’s Tennessee chapter.

Brown is from Nashville and previously ran for Tennessee House in District 54 back in 2018.

Johnson has been in the Tennessee House since 2012, serving District 90 in Knoxville. She rose to national fame in 2023 after surviving an expulsion vote in the General Assembly. Miller-Watkins is a former school board member for Fayette County Public Schools. She was the Democratic nominee for Tennessee Senate District 26 back in 2020 and ran for Tennessee House in District 94 in 2016.

U.S. HOUSE – DISTRICT 8

In District 8, incumbent Rep. David Kustoff is unopposed in the Republican primary.

Kustoff was first elected to represent District 8 back in 2016. Before that, he served as the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee from 2006 to 2008.

On the Democratic side, there are five candidates – Sarah Freeman , Leonard Perkins, Lawrence Pivnick, Lynnette Williams and Brenda Woods .

Freeman is from Germantown and is an educator and mother. She has served on the executive committees for both the Shelby County Democratic Party and the Tennessee Democratic Party.

Perkins is a pastor, substance abuse counselor and veteran. He served as an air traffic controller in the U.S. Air Force and is retired from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Pivnick is a retired law professor at the University of Memphis and has run for several offices before – including two campaigns for Congress in District 8 in 2014 and 2020.

Williams is from Collierville and was the Democratic nominee for District 8 in 2022. She previously ran for the Memphis City Council in 2019 and the Tennessee General Assembly in 2018 and 2020.

Woods is from Bolivar. She served on the Bolivar City Council for several years.

Kustoff and the winner of the Democratic primary will face independent candidate James Hart in November.

U.S. HOUSE – DISTRICT 9

Longtime Rep. Steve Cohen is facing three challengers – M. Latroy Alexandra-Williams, Kasandra Smith and Corey Strong – in the Democratic primary.

Cohen was first elected in District 9 back in 2006. Before that, he served 23 years in the Tennessee Senate and was on the Shelby County Commission in the late 1970’s.

Alexandria-Williams previously ran against Cohen for the District 9 seat in 2016 and 2022. He tried to run in District 9 in 2018 and 2020 — but was disqualified by the Democratic Party.

Smith is currently a Second Lieutenant with the Memphis Police Department. She’s been with MPD since 2000 and has been a police officer since 2001.

Strong previously ran for the District 9 seat back in 2020 and is the former chairman of the Shelby County Democratic Party. He is an attorney and a retired Navy captain.

On the Republican side, Charlotte Bergmann is running unopposed. This is the fourth time she has been the GOP nominee in District 9. She lost to Cohen in 2014, 2018, 2020 and 2022.

The winner in the Democratic primary will face Bergmann and independent candidates Dennis Clark and Wendell Wells in November.

TENNESSEE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

STATE SENATE DISTRICT 30 – SHELBY COUNTY

Democratic Sen. Sara Kyle is being challenged in the primary by Erika Stotts Pearson.

Kyle was first elected in 2014, replacing her husband Jim Kyle – who is currently a Chancery Court Judge in Shelby County. She previously served on the Tennessee Regulatory Authority.

Stotts Pearson is an educator and the co-founder of the Memphis Academy of Health Sciences. She previously ran for Congress in District 8 in 2018 and 2020.

There are no candidates running in the GOP primary – but the winner of the Democratic primary will face independent candidate Mitchell Morrison in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 77 – DYER, LAKE AND OBION COUNTIES

Republican Rep. Rusty Grills is being challenged in the GOP primary by James “Bubba” Cobb .

Grills is a farmer – who was first elected to serve District 77 during a special election in 2019. He previously served as a Dyer County Commissioner.

Cobb is a Dyer County Commissioner and a retired teacher with Dyersburg City Schools.

There are no Democratic or independent candidates running – so whoever wins the primary wins by default in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 80 – HARDEMAN, HAYWOOD AND MADISON COUNTIES

Longtime Rep. Johnny Shaw is being challenged by Shelia Godwin and Jonathan Joy in the Democratic primary.

Shaw was first elected in District 80 back in 2000. This is his first primary challenge since 2016.

Godwin is a Madison County Commissioner. She ran for Congress in District 8 as an independent in 2016. She also ran for Tennessee House District 73 in 2014.

Joy is a former City Council member in Bolivar.

The winner will face Republican Brad Grantham in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 84 – SHELBY COUNTY

Longtime Rep. Joe Towns, Jr. is facing a primary challenge from Democrat Vernell Williams .

Rep. Towns was first elected in 1994.

We could not find any information about Williams online. There are no Republican or independent candidates running – so whoever wins the primary wins by default in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 86 – SHELBY COUNTY

Democratic Rep. Justin J. Pearson is being challenged by David Page in the Democratic primary.

Pearson was elected in 2023 to replace the late Rep. Barbara Cooper. He was one of two Democratic lawmakers expelled from the General Assembly in April 2023 – but he was subsequently reappointed and reelected.

Page ran against Pearson in the June 2023 special primary for District 86. He also ran for the Memphis-Shelby County School Board in District 6 back in 2022.

There are no candidates running in the GOP primary – but the winner of the Democratic primary will face independent candidate Jeff Johnston in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 93 – SHELBY COUNTY

Longtime District 93 Rep. G.A. Hardaway, Sr. is being challenged by LaShanta Rudd in the Democratic primary.

Hardaway was first elected to serve District 93 back in 2006.

Rudd is the founder of Serving in Christ Outreach and a substitute teacher for Memphis-Shelby County Schools.

The winner will face Republican Renarda Clariett in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 96 – SHELBY COUNTY

There are five Democrats running in the primary to replace Rep. Dewayne Thompson – who is retiring after serving 8 years in the General Assembly.

Eric Dunn previously ran for Shelby County Commission in District 7 in 2018 and for Memphis City Council in District 7 in 2015.

Telisa Franklin has a Ph.D. in counseling and serves as the president of the Memphis Juneteenth Festival.

Gabby Salinas is a former researcher at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and has served as chair of the Shelby County Democratic Party. She previously ran for the House District 97 seat in 2020 and the Senate District 31 seat in 2018.

Orrden Williams has run for multiple offices before – including House District 88 in 2020 and 2016, House District 91 in 2014 and Shelby County Commission – District 7 in 2022.

David Winston is a media consultant – who previously ran for the Shelby County School Board in 2014. He filed to run for Memphis mayor in 2023 but withdrew from the race.

There are no Republican or independent candidates running – so whoever wins the primary wins by default in November.

STATE HOUSE DISTRICT 97 – SHELBY COUNTY

Current Dist. 97 Rep. John Gillespie is being challenged by Christina Oppenhuizen in Republican primary.

Gillespie was first elected in 2020. Before joining the General Assembly, he worked as the grant coordinator at Trezevant Episcopal Home. He also worked in the banking industry.

Oppenhuizen is a business owner and mother.

The winner will face Democrat Jesse Huseth in November.

UNCONTESTED PRIMARIES

SENATE DISTRICT 26 Sen. Page Walley (R) No candidates qualified (D)

SENATE DISTRICT 32 Sen. Paul Rose (R) No candidates qualified (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 81 Rep. Debra Moody (R) No candidates qualified (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 82 Rep. Chris Hurt (R) No candidates qualified (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 83 Rep. Mark White (R) Noah Nordstrom (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 85 No candidates qualified (R) Rep. Jesse Chism (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 87 No candidates qualified (R) Rep. Karen Camper (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 88 Larry Hunter (R) Rep. Larry Miller (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 91 No candidates qualified (R) Rep. Torrey Harris (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 94 Rep. Ron Gant (R) T erry Saine (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 95 Rep. Kevin Vaughan (R) No candidates qualified (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 98 Cecil Hale (R) Rep. Antonio Parkinson (D)

HOUSE DISTRICT 99 Rep. Tom Leatherwood (R) No candidates qualified (D)

SPECIAL JUDICIAL RETENTION ELECTION

Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Dwight Tarwater and Criminal Appeals Court Judge Matthew Wilson are facing a retention election. Both judges were appointed by Gov. Bill Lee in 2023. If voters choose “replace,” Gov. Lee will appoint a replacement.