Now that Jeremy Kane has resigned as CEO of LEAD Public School, speculation is that he may make a run for Nashville mayor in 2015, the Tennessean political blogs reports. So far, the lone candidate to show visible signs of launching a mayoral campaign is At-large Councilwoman Megan Barry. Other names believed to be weighing a run include: Businessman Stuart McWhorter, former school board chair David Fox, At-large Councilman Jerry Maynard; businessman Bill Freeman; former U.S. Attorney Jerry Martin and Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall.

Chip Saltsman, a former Tennessee Republican Party chairman and manager of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign, has joined state Rep. Joe Carr’s congressional bid as its campaign director, the Tennessean reports. Saltsman, who also managed U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann’s campaigns in 2010 and 2012, will “manage all facets” of the Lascassas Republican’s 4th Congressional District campaign, a spokesman said.

Joseph “Woody” Woodruff, a partner with Waller Lansden Dortch and Davis in Nashville, will run for Division I circuit judge in next May’s Republican primary, the Nashville Business Journal reports. Woodruff will run in the 21st Judicial District, which includes Williamson, Hickman, Lewis and Perry counties.

After Sen. Doug Henry’s announcement yesterday that he will not seek re-election, Nashville politicos are looking ahead to a Democratic primary fight shaping up between Metro Councilman Jason Holleman and Jeff Yarbro. Holleman, a partner at Jones, Hawkins & Farmer law firm, confirmed he was running for the seat. Yarbo, who is with Bass, Berry & Sims, told the Tennessean he would make an announcement “when the time is right,” although many believe he will run again. In 2010, Yarbro lost to Henry by just 17 votes.

African Americans voted in greater proportion to whites during the 2012 election, data released by the U.S. Census Bureau indicates. For the first time, blacks were more likely than non-Hispanic whites to have cast a ballot in the November presidential vote -- both nationwide and in Tennessee. According to the Tennessean, the surge in black turnout shows the growing importance of minority voters.

John Harris, executive director of the Tennessee Firearms Association, is urging members to “refocus efforts to remove” lawmakers who oppose gun rights, and state Sen. Brian Kelsey, R- Germantown, is at the top of that list, The Tennessean reports. Others targeted for removal by the group are senators Lowe Finney, D-Jackson, Doug Overbey, R-Maryville, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, R-Blountville, and John Stevens, R-Huntingdon; and state representatives Vance Dennis, R-Savannah, and House Speaker Beth Harwell, R-Nashville.

State Rep. Joe Carr, R-Lacasses, has officially announced he is running in the 4th congressional district GOP primary next year, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reports. Carr joins Sen. Jim Tracy, R-Shelbyville, as a challenger to embattled incumbent U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarais. “I am running for Congress because our country is in crisis and Tennesseans are hungry for strong, principled leadership,” Carr said. “The only way to change the culture in Washington is to change the men. And women we send there.”

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Path to Prosperity today, its 2014 budget resolution, the Chattanoogan reports. The budget will ensure an additional $1,500 in household income and create 500,000 jobs, its supporters say. Upon passage, Tennessee Congressmen Chuck Fleischmann and Scott DeJarlais released statements in support of the budget, with Fleischmann calling the budget “a step in the right direction."

Three contenders for chair of the Shelby County Democratic Party will gather supporters Saturday at the district caucuses to determine who will be delegates to the county party convention, where they will elect the new chair. The Memphis Daily News reports that Jennings Barnard, Bryan Carson and Terry Spicer are in the running to replace attorney Van Turner who has served as chair for four years.

Chairman Justin Joy of the Shelby County Republican Party will seek another term at the March 24 party convention. Joy was first elected chairman at the 2011 party convention where he ran unopposed. “Really from the national level all the way down to the local county level, frankly the Republican Party needs to grow,” Joy told the Memphis Daily News. “What I would like to see happen here in Shelby County is for the Republican Party to continue to grow not just for the purpose of winning elections, but for strengthening the party.”