Image Credit: capitol.tn.gov / Public Domain
The Center Square [By Jon Styf] –
A lawsuit funded by the Tennessee Democratic Party is challenging the constitutionality of recently approved legislative maps for Tennessee Senate and House districts.
The lawsuit claims the House map divides more counties than necessary and the Senate map does not consecutively number districts around Davidson County and Nashville.
The approved House map included a split of 30 counties; 23 were split in a Democratic proposal, Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, said when the Senate discussed the map.
“Tennesseans should pick their own representatives and not the other way around,” said Hendrell Remus, chair of the Tennessee Democratic Party. “From the very beginning, we doubted that the Tennessee redistricting process would be open and fair.
“Unfortunately, Republicans also violated the law while gerrymandering our state. We’re proud to be supporting these individuals in their efforts to ensure equal representation for every Tennessean.”
The Senate districts in Davidson County are numbered 17, 19, 20 and 21. The lawsuit said this is important because senatorial terms are four years but half of a county’s districts should be up for reelection every two years and the election cycle is determined by whether the district number is even or odd.
That means that in Davidson County, “three districts will be on the ballot during gubernatorial elections and just one district will be on the ballot during presidential elections,” according to the lawsuit.
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The lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday, asks for the issues to be corrected before the August primary elections.
“This Court should provide the General Assembly with fifteen days to enact new apportionment plans that correct these violations, as required,” the lawsuit reads. “If the General Assembly fails to enact such new maps by the Court’s deadline, the Court should then ‘impose an interim districting plan.’ ”
The Tennessee Democratic Party said it will cover all of the costs related to the lawsuit and litigation, though it was filed by private citizens. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are listed as Davidson County’s Akilah Moore, Shelby County’s Telise Turner and Gibson County’s Gary Wygant.
The defendants are listed as Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, Secretary of State Tre Hargett and Tennessee Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins.
States are required to redraw representative maps every 10 years after the U.S. census. Lee signed the Legislature-approved maps into law Feb. 6.
About the Author: Jon Styf, The Center Square Staff Reporter – Jon Styf is an award-winning editor and reporter who has worked in Illinois, Texas, Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan in local newsrooms over the past 20 years, working for Shaw Media, Hearst and several other companies. Follow Jon on Twitter @JonStyf.
