Republican Candidate in Newly Redrawn Tennessee District Sought to Restrict Powers of Elected Democratic Officials He Now Seeks to Represent
Brent Taylor, a white Republican state senator, is running for Congress in a redrawn district that was previously majority Black, despite having championed laws that curtailed the authority of locally elected Democratic officials from that area.
What happened
Tennessee Republicans redrew Congressional District 9 in spring 2025, converting it from a majority-Black district centered on Memphis to a majority-white district stretching across half the state. State Senator Brent Taylor announced his candidacy for the seat the same day the redistricting was approved (May 7). During his nearly four years in the state senate, Taylor passed approximately six laws that superseded local officials' authority, including measures restricting bail discretion for judges, subjecting the Democratic district attorney's decisions to state review, and voiding the Memphis City Council's ban on police traffic stops. Taylor has loaned his campaign $1.5 million and is favored to win due to the redistricting. His opponent is state Rep. Justin J. Pearson, a 31-year-old Black Democrat who has outraised Taylor in campaign donations and has taken a different approach focused on addressing root causes of crime.
Context
The redistricting followed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in April that made gerrymandering claims harder to challenge. Taylor's legislative record involved overriding Democratic priorities in Memphis, which has struggled with high violent crime rates but has elected Democratic leaders—including District Attorney Steve Mulroy, the first Democrat elected to that office in 25 years—who favor rehabilitation-focused approaches over aggressive prosecution. The laws Taylor championed, according to criminal justice experts and a retired judge, would likely embolden police stops and increase incarceration in an already overcrowded jail where more than 65 people have died since 2018. A law professor studying preemption laws characterized such tough-on-crime measures as historically functioning as "a form of social control against disliked minority groups." The outcome determines representation for a district that includes Memphis, where these policies would have their greatest effect on Black residents.
What's disputed
Taylor declined to be interviewed and did not respond to detailed questions about the impact of his laws. He has stated that the laws prioritize public safety, but critics including a former judge and law professor argue they would harm Black residents and expand incarceration.