TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Paul Burch on May 11, 2023

A Shelby County Chancery Court judge ruled yesterday that the Memphis City Council can join an ongoing lawsuit filed by two Memphis mayoral candidates who oppose a five-year residency requirement. Memphis mayoral candidates Van Turner, who currently heads the Memphis NAACP branch, and Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner sued the Shelby County Election Commission over the requirement that candidates must have lived in Memphis for at least five years to be eligible. The candidates and the city council argue that a 1996 ballot referendum ended the residency requirement. City attorneys argue the five-year requirement is still in effect. Read more from the Commercial Appeal.