Current:Home > ScamsJustin Jones and Justin Pearson, expelled Tennessee House members, win back seats -FinanceMind
Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, expelled Tennessee House members, win back seats
View
Date:2025-04-18 10:25:10
Tennessee Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones, who became Democratic heroes as members of the "Tennessee Three," reclaimed their legislative seats Thursday after they were expelled for involvement in a gun control protest on the House floor.
The young Black lawmakers were reinstated by local officials after being booted from the GOP-dominated Statehouse, but only on an interim basis. They advanced Thursday through a special election to fully reclaim their positions. Both faced opponents in districts that heavily favor Democrats.
Jones, who lives in Nashville, was up against Republican candidate Laura Nelson. Meanwhile, Pearson, from Memphis, faced independent candidate Jeff Johnston.
"Let's send a clear message to everyone who thought they could silence the voice of District 86," Pearson tweeted earlier this month. "You can't expel a movement!"
Thursday's election came as lawmakers are preparing to return to Nashville later this month for a special session to address possibly changing the state's gun control laws. While Jones and Pearson's reelection to their old posts won't make a significant dent to the Republican supermajority inside the Legislature, they are expected to push back heavily against some of their GOP colleagues' policies.
Jones and Pearson were elected to the Statehouse last year. Both lawmakers flew relatively under the radar, even as they criticized their Republican colleagues' policies. It wasn't until this spring that their political careers received a boost when they joined fellow Democrat Rep. Gloria Johnson in a protest for more gun control on the House floor.
The demonstration took place just days after a fatal shooting in Nashville at a private Christian school where a shooter killed three children and three adults. As thousands of protesters flooded the Capitol building to demand that the Republican supermajority enact some sort of restrictions on firearms, the three lawmakers approached the front of the House chamber with a bullhorn, and joined the protesters' chants and cries for action.
Republican lawmakers quickly declared that their actions violated House rules and moved to expel their three colleagues — an extraordinary move that's been taken only a handful of times since the Civil War.
The move briefly left about 140,000 voters in primarily Black districts in Nashville and Memphis with no representation in the Tennessee House.
Ultimately, Johnson, who is white, narrowly avoided expulsion while Pearson and Jones were booted by the predominantly white GOP caucus.
House Republican leaders have repeatedly denied that race was a factor in the expulsion hearings. Democrats have disagreed, with Johnson countering that the only reason that she wasn't expelled was due to her being white.
The expulsions drew national support for the newly dubbed "Tennessee Three," especially for Pearson and Jones' campaign fundraising. The two raised more than $2 million combined through about 70,400 campaign donations from across the country. The amount is well beyond the norm for Tennessee's Republican legislative leaders and virtually unheard of for two freshman Democrats in a superminority.
Meanwhile, more than 15 Republican lawmakers had funneled cash to fund campaign efforts of Jones' Republican opponent, Nelson. Nelson has raised more than $34,000 for the race. Pearson's opponent, Johnston, raised less than $400 for the contest.
- In:
- Gun
- Protests
- Politics
- Nashville
- Elections
veryGood! (789)
Related
- NHL in ASL returns, delivering American Sign Language analysis for Deaf community at Winter Classic
- Amazon is using AI to summarize customer product reviews
- Hydrogen Bus Launched on London Tourist Route
- To reignite the joy of childhood, learn to live on 'toddler time'
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Friday at the beach in Mogadishu: Optimism shines through despite Somalia's woes
- Court Throws Hurdle in Front of Washington State’s Drive to Reduce Carbon Emissions
- Step Inside RuPaul's Luxurious Beverly Hills Mansion
- New data highlights 'achievement gap' for students in the US
- An FDA committee votes to roll out a new COVID vaccination strategy
Ranking
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- U.S. Army soldier Cole Bridges pleads guilty to attempting to help ISIS murder U.S. troops
- A guide to 9 global buzzwords for 2023, from 'polycrisis' to 'zero-dose children'
- The Nipah virus has a kill rate of 70%. Bats carry it. But how does it jump to humans?
- Trump issues order to ban transgender troops from serving openly in the military
- A single-shot treatment to protect infants from RSV may be coming soon
- 7 tiny hacks that can improve your to-do list
- U.S. extends temporary legal status for over 300,000 immigrants that Trump sought to end
Recommendation
What were Tom Selleck's juicy final 'Blue Bloods' words in Reagan family
Garth Brooks responds to Bud Light backlash: I love diversity
More than half of employees are disengaged, or quiet quitting their jobs
Ukraine: Under The Counter
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
Chrysler recalls 330,000 Jeep Grand Cherokees because rear coil spring may detach
In praise of being late: The upside of spurning the clock
It’s Not Just Dakota Access. Many Other Fossil Fuel Projects Delayed or Canceled, Too