Small Turnout Makes It Anyone’s Race in D7
👔 Memphis gets reinforced · Anyone's race in the 7th · O'Connell blames DOGE · Tina Turner statue · Much more!
Good afternoon, everyone. Very few people have gone out to vote for Mark Green's vacated congressional seat, making it a toss-up... Memphis anticipates the presence of federal law enforcement... O'Connell says he needs to find more funding for Metro operations despite two consecutive tax increases... And much more!
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Early voting for the 7th Congressional District special primary ends this Thursday. As expected, turnout has been pretty low. As of Friday, only 11,179 Republican and 9,795 Democrat ballots have been cast. In Davidson County, 4,307 of the 4,950 votes were in the Democrat primary. The winners of each respective primary will face off on December 2nd to replace former Representative Mark Green.
Green, who announced he would be prematurely vacating his seat earlier this summer, won his past two elections by more than 20 points. Though it’s the Republican’s race to lose, the special circumstances and low turnout could make a Democratic win possible once we get to the general election.
As far as money goes, state Representatives Lee Reeves and Gino Bulso have the most cash on hand, with over half a million dollars at each of their disposal. Former state General Services Commissioner Matt Van Epps raised the most money through donations and was endorsed by Green.
Republicans
- Matt Van Epps — $360K (all donor contributions)
- Lee Reeves — $270K (donors) + $280K (self) = $550K total
- Jody Barrett — $235K (all donor contributions)
- Gino Bulso — $55K (donors) + $500K (self) = $555K total
Democrats
- Darden Copeland — $310K (donors) + $125K (self) = $435K total
- Bo Mitchell — $190K (donors) + $10K (self) = $200K total
- Aftyn Behn — $150K (all donor contributions)
- Vincent Dixie — $140K (all donor contributions)
State Representative Jody Barrett seems to be the dark horse pick on the Republican ticket. Despite ranking last among the top four GOP candidates in terms of fundraising, it’s his name that keeps showing up in attack ads.
Before hitting the ballot box, get voting information here and check out the candidates here.
🖋️ Edited by Megan Podsiedlik.
🪖 Send In The Reinforcements Phase one of “Memphis Safe Task Force” operations starts this week, and Tennessee National Guard troops will be deputized to support local law enforcement.
On Friday, Governor Lee said that the troops will remain unarmed unless it’s requested by local law enforcement, and various agencies will deploy resources to the city in phases. This week, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration are set to arrive.
Lee also announced that the state is investing $100 million grant dollars in Memphis public safety initiatives and funding 300 extra state troopers. Memphis Mayor Paul Young is hoping for a sustained effort in the area. “My goal is to make sure that as resources come into our community, we find ways to use them effectively and for the benefit of the residents of our great city,” he said. Lee explained that the operation to tackle crime in Memphis will continue as long as it's needed.
💸 Funding The Machine Mayor Freddie O’Connell said that despite big budget investments this year, he’s looking for more funding. “As we look at changes in both federal and state policy and funding landscapes, Metro alone will not be able to be a unilateral backstop for funding cuts,” he said during Friday’s media roundtable. O’Connell highlighted the “unavoidable job losses” due to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and more funding cuts to come via President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.
Metro departments and officials continue to face scrutiny over fiscal cliffs created by the mismanagement of one-time grant funding. When asked about Metro spending habits and the Audit Committee’s recent decision to look into the alleged mismanagement within the Office of Homeless Services (OHS), the mayor explained that investing short-term, government funding to establish long-term solutions is sometimes part of the strategy.
“We knew that a lot of those things, and Mayor Cooper's $50 million investment that Metro Council worked on collaboratively there, [that] there is likely going to be a fall off at the end of that,” said O’Connell. “And we haven't necessarily gotten all the way into the strategies for mitigating that, but it was also designed in some ways to be a surge, and then we're going to have to figure out what the replacement is.”
DEVELOPMENT
- Robert's owners prep for bar expansion after record-breaking deal (NBJ)
- Loeffler Randall brand opens largest store, in Nashville (NBJ)
- Dave’s Cosmic Subs taps Sylvan Park for first Tennessee shop (Post)
- Verna Café & Bar opens in former Cafe Coco space (Post)
✹ TINA? IS THAT YOU?
A bizarre-looking statue of performer Tina Turner was unveiled in Turner's hometown of Brownsville, TN over the weekend. (More Info)
THINGS TO DO
View our calendar for the week here.
📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.
🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.
👨🏻🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide.
TONIGHT
🪕 Ole 60 @ Ryman Auditorium, 7p, $71+, Info
🪕 Kyle Tuttle's Bluegrass Monday @ Dee's Lounge, 6p, $10, Info
🪕 Val Storey, Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle & New Monday @ Station Inn, 8p, $20, Info
💀 Grateful Monday @ Acme Feed & Seed, 7p, Free, Info
🕺 Motown Monday @ The 5 Spot, 9p, $5, Info
📰 Check out the full newsletter archive here.
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Today's newsletter is brought to you by Davis Hunt, Megan Podsiedlik and Camelia Brennan.