Republicans’ firm grip on the Tennessee General Assembly has converted much of its politics into theater. The GOP’s complete control over committees and floor votes means legislative priorities, viable bills and even the basic flow of discussion can largely be determined before any gavels strike. Interesting politics happen when an internal wedge issue — like last year’s voucher opposition from Republican reps worried about rural public schools — divides enough of the party to force backroom dealmaking. In front of the cameras, members often dabble in the performing arts rather than good-faith debate, with key votes largely locked up by caucus leadership.
The futility and frustration of being a Democrat in the state legislature has many trying to get out. Nashville’s Democratic Reps. Bo Mitchell, Vincent Dixie and Aftyn Behn jumped at the surprise chance to vie for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, a gerrymandered Republican seat in the U.S. House of Representatives that more than one candidate privately acknowledged as a fool’s errand during the compressed campaign season. State Rep. Justin Pearson of Memphis announced his own campaign to unseat incumbent U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen in October, aiming for the only federal seat held by a Democrat in Tennessee. State Sens. Heidi Campbell and Jeff Yarbro tried for Nashville mayor in 2023, Rep. Gloria Johnson of Knoxville tried for U.S. Senate in 2024, and state Rep. Caleb Hemmer — a promising up-and-comer just four years ago — announced his own retirement from the chamber in November after two terms.
Democratic House Minority Leader Karen Camper, who ran for Memphis mayor in 2023, and her Assistant Minority Leader Harold Love Jr. steer Democrats in the lower chamber, while Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari and Assistant Minority Leader London Lamar lead the Senate’s six Democrats. The party is likely still navigating fundamental internal debates as Democrats’ youthful stars Pearson, Rep. Justin Jones and Rep. Gabby Salinas lead the Tennessee Progressive Caucus. That caucus debuted this year without high-profile progressive Behn, who tells the Scene she was busy with legislative programming during the group’s first press conference earlier this month.
State House Speaker Cameron Sexton has wielded conservatives’ power in the General Assembly since succeeding scandal-ridden Glen Casada (who will avoid prison time thanks to a pardon from President Trump) in 2019. Sexton has focused on serving Gov. Bill Lee as a loyal lieutenant, largely avoiding political controversy — though reporting has raised questions about decision-making in his personal life, as the Crossville representative was discovered to own a Nashville residence in 2023. In the fall, a Briley Parkway altercation between a Metro Nashville Police Department officer and Sexton’s state-trooper escort indicated that the speaker enjoys the trappings of a high political perch. Messier floor speeches and bills have fallen to House Majority Leader William Lamberth, an ambitious second-in-command who seems to enjoy provoking Democrats and waging culture war. Fellow Republican Reps. Gino Bulso, Lee Reeves and Jody Barrett all ran campaigns for U.S. Congress in the fall, ultimately losing to Matt Van Epps in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District.
Lt. Gov. Randy McNally of East Tennessee presides over the sleepier state Senate. McNally will mark 40 years — 10 of them as the Senate’s leader — in 2027. Not even emergency heart surgery, which McNally endured in Nashville during the 2023 legislative session, kept him off the dais for long. His long career was threatened more directly by seemingly flirtatious comments on a young man’s Instagram posts, which provoked a failed no-confidence vote from colleagues and mocking at the national level. Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson of Williamson County and Deputy Speaker John Stevens are two (relatively) younger colleagues in chamber leadership who may be interested in taking his gavel.
Bigger seats loom beyond the Capitol that may influence party dynamics this spring. Goodlettsville’s Rep. Johnny Garrett, the Republicans’ House whip, is running (and fundraising for) a campaign to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. John Rose in Tennessee’s 6th Congressional District. Rose faces U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn in the Republican primary for Tennessee governor, and the party split might tempt some elected officials to take a side. If she wins the gubernatorial race (and she’s expected to), before scheduling a special election for her former Senate seat, Blackburn would appoint a successor — immediately vaulting one lucky Republican into the political stratosphere. Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs is the consensus pick, one Republican state representative tells the Scene, though any Republican will likely take the chance to curry favor with Blackburn as the veteran campaigner aims for the governor’s mansion.
From immigration enforcement to voucher expansion, the Republican supermajority is pushing for Tennessee to be the nation’s conservative leader
