Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jason Martin spoke to voters on Saturday at the Williamson County Democratic Party’s Hugh Williamson Unity Picnic, pitching “compassion and common sense” a little more than a month before the November general election.
The self-described “girl dad” is a critical-care doctor by trade who told the crowd of around 100 people in Franklin’s Strahl Street Park about his experiences working in an 18-bed intensive care unit in a Sumner County hospital during the height of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The 47-year-old Martin said caring for and witnessing more than 400 people die from the virus was “life-changing,” calling the experience key to his decision to throw his hat in the ring.
“It's what caused me to turn my life upside-down, and [I] wanted to run this race because of the moments of pain that we felt in the ICU,” Martin said.
The state’s COVID-19 response was one example of what Martin said was a failure of leadership from Gov. Bill Lee, his heavily favored Republican opponent in the Nov. 8 election.
“We got no leadership from Gov. Lee in those moments,” Martin said. “We got threats to defund the health department, we got silence from the governor when people in the General Assembly were pushing horse pills on people, we got executive orders to weaken school districts’ ability to protect their children and their teachers, and y'all, we're not going to stand for it anymore in Tennessee.”
In July, Martin took part in a gubernatorial and congressional candidate forum at University of Tennessee Southern, hosted by The Tennessean, at which he said he would govern based on data.
“I would surround myself with content experts, and I would come up with public policy decisions that reflect the moment, without any worry about political ramifications,” Martin said during the forum.
Martin also criticized the state’s abortion ban during Saturday’s event, which he called “radical.”
“It's already delaying care,” Martin said. “It's already hurting women and birthing people in the state of Tennessee, and it must be overturned. The candidate pledged to “use every ounce of executive authority” to protect doctors.
Jason Martin at the Williamson County Democratic Party’s Hugh Williamson Unity Picnic, Oct. 1, 2022
“I know what it's like to sit in that exam room and have someone make a decision to die,” Martin said of expanding Medicaid. “Working people, people working two and three jobs, making the decision to die rather than get treatment for their disease because they didn't want to saddle their family with medical debt. That should not happen in 2022. It's part of my motivation to be the governor of the state of Tennessee. I know we can do better to take care of one another.”
WSMV political analyst Kent Syler noted in August that because Lee has the advantage, Martin’s challenge is to “reestablish the Democratic brand” in rural counties in order to contend with the incumbent.
Martin also advocated for investing in expanded broadband access and legalizing cannabis, calling medical cannabis a “no-brainer,” pitching the legalization of the plant as an economic driver for the state and for farmers, among other issues.
Martin has attacked the Lee administration on nearly all fronts, including on the ongoing fallout from the Hillsdale charter school controversy. Martin said that issue, as well as the recent increased funding to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation following the murder of Memphis teacher Eliza Fletcher, show Lee on the defense just over one month before the election. Lee has maintained a significant financial advantage over Martin throughout the race.
“Gov. Lee is on the run right now, and this race is absolutely winnable,” Martin said.
Martin has also called Lee out for refusing to debate.
The state of Tennessee provides a variety of voter resources: See how to register to vote, find voting locations and find more information.
Early voting for the Nov. 8 general election will be held from Oct. 19 until Nov. 3, with the deadline to register to vote set for Oct. 11.
