State Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, and former Nashville school board member Fran Bush announced today they are joining the race for Nashville’s next mayor. Yarbro, a lawyer, earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard and his law degree from the University of Virginia. He has served in the legislature since 2014 and is an attorney at Bass, Berry & Sims in the Government/Politics Sector. Bush served from 2018-2022 as the District 6 board member for the Metro Nashville Public Schools Board of Education. A Nashville native and graduate of Tennessee State University, Bush lost her reelection bid this past August. The Tennessean looks at each of the candidates.

In recent weeks a new candidate has announced a bid for Nashville mayor. The Nashville Scene reports that retired business executive Jim Gingrich has thrown hit hat in the ring. The Kansas City-area native helped move Wall Street firm AllianceBernstein to Nashville in 2018. He retired in 2020. In related news, the Nashville Post today reports that two individuals thought to be considering runs have announced they are out. They are state Rep. Bob Freeman, D-Nashville, and former mayor Megan Barry.

Former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton yesterday announced his candidacy for another term in the role, the Commercial Appeal reports. “We need proven leadership,” Herenton said of the office. “This is not the time for on-the-job training." Herenton, 82, served as Memphis mayor from 1992 until 2009. He ran for an additional term in 2019, but ultimately conceded to Mayor Jim Strickland. Herenton joins 10 others in the race for mayor.  

The Tennessee Democratic Party (TNDP) announced yesterday it will begin taking an active role in nonpartisan elections and will endorse candidates who run as independents in partisan races. “In the 2022 cycle, we had a lot of candidates running in nonpartisan races or running as independents we couldn’t support,” said TNDP Chair Hendrell Remus. The party has a longstanding practice of not being involved in nonpartisan races. Kent Syler, a political science professor at Middle Tennessee State University, says the move is likely a response to Republican legislation to increase the role of partisan elections. This year, bills have been introduced to make all state and local elections partisan, require Supreme Court judges to declare a party affiliation, and institute a closed primary system in which all voters must declare a party affiliation before voting. Tennessee Lookout has more on the story.

Memphis City Council member Frank Colvett has announced he will run for mayor of Memphis, making him the 10th person to join the race, the Daily Memphian reports. Additional candidates include: Daniel Abston; Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr.; retired Criminal Court Judge Joe Brown; state Rep. Karen Camper, D-Memphis; J.W. Gibson; Michelle McKissack; Hastina Robinson; attorney and Memphis Branch NAACP president Van Turner Jr.; and Downtown Memphis Commission President Paul Young. Candidates in the city elections can begin pulling and filing qualifying petitions to get on the nonpartisan ballot in May. Early voting begins in mid-September. Election Day is Oct. 5.

Nashville Mayor John Cooper will not run for re-election, the Nashville Post reports. Cooper was elected to the office in 2019 after serving one term on the Metro Council. His time in office has been defined by the 2020 tornado, COVID-19, the Christmas 2020 bombing and a push to build a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans. Former Metro official Matt Wiltshire and Metro councilmembers Freddie O'Connell and Sharon Hurt are among those running for the position. During a press conference today, Cooper spoke about the “unprecedented challenges” he’s faced during his time as mayor. "I never wanted to campaign — I wanted to govern,” he added.

Metro Nashville Vice Mayor Jim Shulman expects to meet with Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, in the coming weeks to discuss rumored legislation that would decrease the size of Metro Council, the Tennessean reports. The potential legislation is allegedly in retaliation for councilmembers not supporting efforts to bring the 2024 Republican National Convention to the city. Metro Council’s 40-member size is one of the largest in the country. There is no set meeting between Shulman and Sexton yet, but Shulman says there is a need for “better lines of communication.”

Shelby County commissioners have voted to delay the appointment of a District 86 representative until after the special primary in January, the Daily Memphian reports. The state House seat was made vacant by the death of Rep. Barbara Cooper, D-Memphis, who won her election in November despite having passed away in October. Commissioners chose to appoint the winner of the Jan. 24 Democratic primary. That person will serve until the results of the March election are certified. With no Republican or independent challengers, the March general election is a formality. Ten people have qualified to run for the seat. Commission Chairman Mickell Lowery will move to appoint the primary winner during a Feb. 1 meeting.  

Metro Nashville At-Large Councilmember Sharon Hurt on Monday announced she is running for mayor of Nashville, the Tennessean reports. Her campaign will focus on job creation, workforce development and incentivizing and supporting the growth of small businesses and nonprofits, which she calls the "anchors of our neighborhoods." Hurt joins fellow Councilmember Freddie O’Connell and Nashville economic development and affordable housing veteran Matt Wiltshire in the race to unseat incumbent Mayor John Cooper, who hasn’t confirmed whether he’ll run for reelection. Hurt currently serves as the executive director of StreetWorks, a nonprofit working to eliminate the HIV/AIDS epidemic and is a longtime community advocate know for her work in North Nashville.

President Joe Biden yesterday promised to send Congress a bill codifying abortion rights in January if Democrats control the legislature next year. He said it will be the first bill he sends to Capitol Hill and promised to sign it, the Associated Press reports. As he has done in the past, Biden emphasized that only Congress can fully restore abortion access to what it was before the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, which overturned Roe v. Wade. If however, the Congress is in Republican hands, he vowed to reject any abortion restrictions that may come to his desk.