(The Center Square) – State Sen. John Stevens made it clear that redrawing Tennessee’s congressional map was intended to give Republicans an edge in Congress.
The new map that splits Memphis and Shelby County into three districts passed on Thursday, with Democrats voting against it, saying it was an effort to dilute Black voting strength in the state’s only Democratic district.
Protestors inside and outside the Statehouse tried to shout over the proceedings, prompting House and Senate leaders to halt the proceedings at times.
Tennessee has nine congressional seats, and only one is represented by a Democrat, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen of Memphis. The goal of the new map is to elect Republicans to all nine congressional seats, according to Stevens and other Democrats.
Gov. Bill Lee called lawmakers back to Nashville for the special session after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Louisiana’s redistricting map, forced by a lower court, relied too heavily on race. Democrats said the Louisiana decision did not require Tennessee to redraw its district lines.
“If the Supreme Court decided to say that a $2 poll tax was OK, and the governor called us back in, would we be OK with passing legislation to move to a $2 poll tax?” asked Rep. Torrey Harris, D-Memphis, during the House debate.
Stevens, a Huntingdon Republican, and other members of his party reiterated during the short session that the maps were not about race, but politics. He said other Democratic states have prioritized partisan interests in the redistricting process.
“This bill represents Tennessee’s attempt to maximize our partisan advantage and allow Tennesseans to support a national Congress to be a Republican majority,” Stevens said.
Democrats said they did not buy that argument.
“That congressional leaders would vote to disenfranchise one of the few remaining sources of representation for Tennessee’s Black communities is, sadly, no surprise,” said Tennessee Democratic Party Black Caucus Chairman Solomon Trapp. “History has a way of repeating itself when those in power refuse to learn from it. This is nothing less than a modern-day revival of Jim Crow, proving that racism remains deeply embedded in the fabric of our political systems.”
Lawmakers also passed a bill that sets qualifying for the new congressional districts on May 15. The primary is Aug. 6.
The bills now go to Lee, who is expected to sign them.
Other Republican states have either redrawn or are currently considering new congressional districts.
