The Tennessee Republican Party yesterday voted to remove three congressional hopefuls from the primary ballot in the redistricted 5th Congressional District, the Tennessean reports. Official challenges had been filed against Baxter Lee, Morgan Ortagus and Robby Starbuck on the basis of their party bona fides. Those filings triggered a technical removal from the ballot per party bylaws. The party could have restored them to the ballot but declined to do so.

After Sumner County General Sessions Judge Jim Hunter announced in 2021 he would not seek reelection after nearly 20 years on the bench, several local attorneys took notice. Four are running as Republicans: Ron Blanton, Russ Edwards, Kee Bryant-McCormick and Bill Whalen. The winner of that race will run against attorney Tyler Templeton, an independent candidate, in the Aug. 4 general election. The five candidates answered questions from The Portland Sun about their views of the justice system and what they would do if elected.

Stacie Odeneal, a child welfare law specialist from Lawrenceburg, has announced she is running to fill the seat on the 22nd District Circuit Court recently made vacant by the retirement of Judge Stella Hargrove. According to a release from Odeneal’s campaign, she is one of only 31 child welfare law specialists in the state and focuses on serving children and families in Lawrence, Maury, Wayne and Giles counties. A graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, Odeneal says she has served more than 2,500 families in 15 years of practicing law. She’ll be running as an Independent on the August ballot. “I like my courts like I like America — Independent,” said Odeneal in the release. “In my courtroom, only the law and the facts can matter. You should be able to trust that to be true outside the courtroom as well.”

Tres Wittum, a research analyst for Sen. Bo Watson, R-Chattanooga, has announced he is running for the open 5th District Congressional seat, the Tennessee Journal reports. According to Wittum’s campaign announcement, he has been active in state politics for more than 15 years, serving the Senate since 2011 in both the Senate Speaker Pro Tempore’s office and the Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee. Wittum joins a growing list of candidates seeking the Republican nod, including  Geni Batchelor, Jeff Beierlein, Natisha Brooks, Beth Harwell, Baxter Lee, Timothy Lee, Andy Ogles, Morgan Ortagus, Stewart T. Parks, Robby Starbuck and Kurt Winstead. Ortagus, Starbuck and Baxter Lee all face formal challenges with the Tennessee Republican Party, which prompted a technical removal from the ballot. The GOP executive committee by Thursday will vote on whether to allow them back on the ballot.  

During a recent debate, challenger Sara Beth Myers accused incumbent Davidson County District Attorney General Glenn Funk of violating the state’s “Little Hatch Act” when he recruited several prosecutors from his office to speak during a campaign forum about domestic violence. The state law prevents public officials from using taxpayer resources for elections or pressuring employees to help them get elected. In a statement, Funk said that his employees were talking about their accomplishments prosecuting domestic violence cases and used personal time off to participate. WPLN has more on the story.

Politics within the Republican party have intensified as three high-profile candidates face permanent removal from the 5th Congressional District primary ballot. Morgan Ortagus, Robby Starbuck and Baxter Lee all face formal challenges that have been filed with the Tennessee Republican Party. The challenges trigger a technical removal from the ballot per party bylaws, the Tennessean reports. The state party’s executive committee will vote by Thursday whether to add the candidates back on the ballot.

State Sen. Brenda Gilmore, D-Nashville, yesterday announced her retirement and subsequent endorsement of Keeda Haynes for the District 19 seat she has held for one term. Haynes also announced her bid for the seat yesterday. The announcements fell on the final day to qualify for a state Senate primary race, raising questions of “skulduggery,” the Nashville Post reports. The state’s anti-skulduggery law prevents candidates from withdrawing at the last minute to help out a friend. The last-minute maneuvering could trigger an extended qualifying period for the seat, which represents North Nashville, parts of East Nashville and south to Antioch. Haynes, a former public defender, unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Nashville, in the Democratic primary for the 5th Congressional seat in 2020.

The bill putting residency requirements in place for most Congressional hopefuls became a law yesterday despite Gov. Bill Lee’s refusal to sign it, the Associated Press reports. Under the new law, U.S. House and Senate candidates must be Tennessee residents for at least three years and residents of the county they’ll represent for at least one. Lawmakers began seriously pursuing the measure after former President Donald Trump endorsed 5th District Congressional candidate Morgan Ortagus, who legislators pointed out is new to Nashville and Tennessee. But a spokesperson for Secretary of State Tre Hargett clarified that the “requirement does not apply retroactively” to anyone who qualified for the race by the April 7 deadline – which includes Ortagus. A lawsuit challenging the bill has already been filed by several Ortagus supporters. A spokesperson for Lee explained why the governor withheld his signature from the rule, saying he feels “voters are best able to determine who should represent them in Congress.”  

The Tennessee Supreme Court today vacated an injunction issued by a three-judge panel that prevented enforcement of a redistricting plan enacted by the General Assembly for state Senate districts. The lower court had issued the injunction after finding the map violated the state constitution. It gave the legislature 15 days to rectify the map and extended the filing deadline for Senate candidates. The state appealed to the Court of Appeals, but the Tennessee Supreme Court, on its own motion, granted appeal, saying the case raised issues of compelling public interest. Today the court said the lower court failed to “adequately consider the harm the injunction will have on the election officials and also failed to adequately consider the public interest in ensuring orderly elections and avoiding voter confusion.” The court vacated the injunction and set a new filing deadline of 4 p.m. tomorrow. Justice Sharon G. Lee dissented from the majority opinion.

The early voting period for Tennessee’s May 3 primary begins April 13. Voters will have until April 28 to cast an early vote. Information on polling locations and hours can be found on the following sites: Chattanooga, the Chattanoogan; Clarksville, Clarksville Now; Knoxville, WBIR; Memphis, WREG; Nashville, the Tennessean. To check your voter registration status, head over to the Tennessee Secretary of State website.