Tennessee Republicans Split Memphis' 9th District in 3, Stripping Democrats of Committee Posts
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · May 19
Tennessee Republicans Split Memphis' 9th District in 3, Stripping Democrats of Committee Posts
6 articles · Updated · The Guardian · May 19
Memphis' longtime Democratic seat was dismantled this month when Tennessee's new map carved the 9th District into three parts, effectively ending Rep. Steve Cohen's 19-year hold on the seat.
The redraw shifts many Black Memphis voters into heavily Republican Williamson County, a move critics say exploits the Supreme Court's recent 6-3 Louisiana v Callais ruling that weakened Voting Rights Act protections for Black representation.
Cameron Sexton, the Tennessee House speaker, also removed Democratic caucus members from committee assignments after protests that included linking arms, blocking aisles and handing a colleague earplugs.
The Tennessee moves fit a broader Southern push after the ruling: Louisiana is poised to lose 1 of 2 Black-majority districts, Alabama has been allowed to erase 1 of 2, and Mississippi Republicans are openly targeting Bennie Thompson's seat.
Congressional Black Caucus chair Yvette Clarke said 19 of the caucus's 62 members could be at risk through 2028, underscoring how redistricting fights now threaten Black political representation beyond a single state.
How might the new legal standard for redistricting challenges influence electoral maps nationwide ahead of the 2028 elections?
How does redistricting impact communities when it merges them into areas with historically divisive official symbols?
Tennessee’s 2026 Congressional Map: The Elimination of the 9th District, Black Voter Dilution, and the Fight for Democratic Representation
Overview
In May 2026, Tennessee's legislature, influenced by President Trump's call for a fully Republican state and a Supreme Court ruling against race-based redistricting, passed a controversial new congressional map. This map dismantled the majority-Black 9th District by splitting it into three, diluting Black voting power and likely eliminating the state's last Democratic congressional seat. As a result, Republican control over Tennessee's federal delegation was solidified. In response to protests, Speaker Cameron Sexton stripped all House Democrats of their committee assignments, immediately silencing the voices of nearly 2 million Tennesseans and raising serious concerns about fair representation.