Tennessee Republican lawmakers unveiled new congressional maps Wednesday that would eliminate the state’s only Democratic-held seat, acting days after a Supreme Court ruling cleared the path for partisan redistricting.
The maps, released by GOP leadership in the state House and Senate, split Memphis into three Republican-leaning districts, removing Rep. Steve Cohen from a district he has held for nearly two decades. Davidson County, home to Nashville, would also be divided into multiple larger GOP-held seats.
House Speaker Cameron Sexton framed the move as a direct response to last week’s Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais, which struck down a majority-Black congressional district as an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.
“The Supreme Court has opined that redistricting, like the judicial system, should be color-blind,” Sexton said Wednesday. “The decision indicated states can redistrict based off partisan politics. Today, Tennessee joins other red and blue states in redrawing their congressional maps.”
Governor Bill Lee called a special session to address the redistricting question following the ruling. The proposed map is expected to advance through committee and receive votes in both chambers on Wednesday.
State Sen. John Stevens defended the new boundaries as an accurate reflection of the electorate. “Tennessee is a conservative state and our congressional delegation should reflect that,” Stevens said. “This bill ensures it does.”
U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn had pushed for the redraw immediately after the Supreme Court ruling. “I urge our state legislature to reconvene to redistrict another Republican seat in Memphis,” she said after the decision. “It’s essential to cement the agenda and the Golden Age of America.”
Tennessee’s current congressional delegation is 8-1 in favor of Republicans. If the maps pass, that would become 9-0.
President Trump, following the SCOTUS ruling last week, publicly called on Republican-controlled state legislatures to redraw their maps. Tennessee is among the first to move on that directive.
