Justin Pearson stays in Tennessee House race after map shift

Tennessee state lawmaker Justin Pearson says he will stay in the race for the US House after Republicans redrew the state's 9th Congressional District, forcing the Memphis Democrat to campaign across a larger and more Republican-leaning area.

Pearson, a 31-year-old African American Democrat, faces three rivals in the Democratic primary on Thursday, August 6. He said the new map made him ask whether to quit or stay in the race, and he chose to continue.

Republicans in Tennessee's state legislature redrew the district in May after a US Supreme Court decision involving the Voting Rights Act. The new map split majority-Black Memphis into three districts stretching across the state. The 9th District is now widely expected to favor Republicans.

Pearson said the redistricting changed his campaign from a district covering about 1.5 counties to one covering 15 counties. He said he now has to campaign in communities he had not visited before, including rural and strongly Republican areas far from Memphis.

Pearson accused Republicans of trying to weaken Black political power and prevent Black voters from choosing their own representatives.

Steve Hickey, chairman of the Williamson County Republican Party, rejected claims that race drove the redistricting and called it a political calculation. He said the party in power can make the rules and said Republicans hope the district can provide another House seat to support President Trump and the Republican majority.

Several voter outreach groups in Memphis told AFP that electing a Democratic representative would likely require turnout of about 75%. In the 2022 midterm elections, turnout in Shelby County, where Memphis is located, was 34%.