Tennessee Democratic Party
Abbreviation	TNDP
Chairman	Rachel Campbell
Secretary	Ryan Scofield
Senate Minority Leader	Raumesh Akbari
House Minority Leader	Karen Camper
Founder	Andrew Jackson,John Overton,John H. Eaton,William B. Lewis,Andrew Jackson Donelson, andJohn Catron
Founded	1826; 199 years ago (1826)
Headquarters	4900 Centennial Blvd. Ste 300,Nashville, Tennessee
Student wing	Tennessee High School Democrats Tennessee College Democrats
Youth wing	Tennessee Young Democrats
Women's wing	Tennessee Federation of Democratic Women
Ideology	Modern liberalism
National affiliation	Democratic Party
Colors	Blue
Seats in theU.S. Senate	0 / 2
Seats in theU.S. House	1 / 9
Seats in theState Senate	6 / 33
Seats in theState House	24 / 99
Election symbol
Website
tndp.org

TheTennessee Democratic Party (TNDP) is the affiliate of theDemocratic Party inTennessee. The party was founded in 1826 initially as theJacksonian Party. The Tennessee Democratic Party was born out of PresidentAndrew Jackson's populist philosophy ofJacksonian democracy in the mid to late-1820s.^[1] After Jackson left office, theDemocratic Party struggled in the state as theWhig Party would go on to be the dominant party in Tennessee until its collapse after the1852 Election.^[2] Prior to theCivil War, as a result of the collapse of the formerWhig Party, the Democratic Party became the dominant party in the state. After the war ended, theRepublican Party would be the dominant political party duringReconstruction, but onceReconstruction ended, theDemocratic Party would dominate Tennessee Politics up until 2011 when theRepublican Party would gain firm control ofTennessee State Government.^[3]

Prior to the rise of Jacksonian Democracy, political parties in Tennessee were really non-existent. Since Tennessee was admitted to the Union in 1796,^[4] Tennessee had only voted for theDemocratic-Republican Party in each Presidential Election from1796 to1820.^[2] For the1824 Presidential Election,Andrew Jackson, a former Military General and thenU.S. Senator forTennessee, decided to run for president against PresidentJames Monroe's thenSecretary of StateJohn Quincy Adams,^[5] the son of former President and founding fatherJohn Adams.

Both Adams and Jackson belonged to the same Party, and that Party had divided out into several different factions with Adams being the Northern faction's nominee and Jackson being the Southern faction's nominee.^[5] Jackson would win the popular vote and would have the most electoral votes, but he did not have enoughElectoral College votes to win outright.^[5] The election went to the House of Representatives where one of the three top vote getters would be elected president. The three were, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, andHenry Clay ofKentucky. Clay, who was then theSpeaker of the House of Representatives, liked Adam's programs for internal improvements so much that he chose to swing his support to Adams, and thus Adams won the vote in the House of Representatives.^[5] After Adams was inaugurated, Adams decided to appoint Clay to be hisSecretary of State, which outraged Jackson and his supporters.^[5]

Between 1825 and 1826, Jackson's supporters were gearing up to have Jackson run in 1828. While Jackson wouldn't publicly commit to running, he was essentially planning on running to win in 1828.^[1] Surrounded by loyal advisors, the Jacksonian Party was formed in 1826 when Jackson supporters began running under the Jacksonian Party.^[1] The Jacksonian Party, aided by New York PoliticianMartin Van Buren, would go on to become the dominant political party in the United States from 1829 to 1839.^[7] During this period, the party in Tennessee was still floundering as it did not have any formal party structure for the first few years, however that not matter as long as Jackson was in theWhite House.

When Jackson retired from the White House,Vice PresidentMartin Van Buren would be Jackson's handpicked successor in the 1836.^[7] Now with a formidable opposition party with the Whigs, Jackson's Democratic Party had issues getting Van Buren elected, especially in Jackson's home state of Tennessee. Jackson campaigned heavily for Van Buren, but Tennessee nativeSenatorHugh Lawson White would actually carry the state's electoral votes over Van Buren.^[2] This would start a trend of Tennessee voters only electing Whig Party Candidates in each Presidential Election from the Election of 1836 to the Election of 1852.^[2]

For other offices during this time, it was a mix bag of Whigs and Democrats until the Whig Party's collapse in 1854.^[8] In1856, Tennessee would vote for aDemocrat for the first time since1836, when Tennessee voted forJames Buchanan forPresident.^[2] By the time theElection of 1860 rolled around, the political climate had dramatically shifted due the sectional strife around the issue ofSlavery, and its expansion into the territories.^[9] In that election, Tennessee would narrowly vote for theConstitutional Union Party nominee,John Bell due to a majority of Tennesseans supported preserving the Union.^[10] By June 1861, Tennessee voters would pass an Ordinance of Secession leading to Tennessee becoming the lastSouthern state to join theConfederacy.^[10]

When the Civil War ended, the political landscape had changed inTennessee. Tennessee had been undermilitary control since February 1862 whenUnion forces captured theState Capitol ofNashville.^[10] When civilian control had returned, aided by a wartime edict by then Military GovernorAndrew Johnson that barred Confederate sympathizers from holding political office, theRepublican Party took control ofTennessee State Government in March 1865. Along with control of theGeneral Assembly,Republicans controlled theGovernor's office for the first time with the electionWilliam G. Brownlow.^[14]

During the years Republicans had control of the General Assembly, they expanded the right to vote to newly freed slaves, disenfranchised former Confederates, and passed a law that would allow theGovernor to declareMartial Law in individual counties in order to combat the influence of theKu Klux Klan.^[14] However, by 1869 Republican dominance in state politics began to subside as Democrats in the state took control of state government. The Democratic Party would then work to undo the reforms enacted by the Brownlow administration over the next few years.

By the timeReconstruction ended in1877, Democrats were firmly in control ofTennessee Government, but that control came at an ultimate cost to many of the state'sAfrican American voters. From the end of theCivil War until theCivil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s,African American's voted exclusively forRepublicans, but when Southern Conservative Democrats regained control of Southern Legislatures they would enact a series of racist laws known asJim Crow Laws, that specifically codified racist views into law.^[15] Because of these laws passed after the end of Reconstruction, generations of African American citizens would face extreme racial discrimination in everyday life, the rise of lynching, and the rise of segregation.

Throughout the rest of the 19th century, Tennessee voters would only elect and vote mainly for Democrats to the General Assembly, the Governor's office, and federal offices.^[2] Between 1869 and 1900, only twoRepublicans would be electedGovernor of Tennessee those wereDewitt Clinton Senter andAlvin Hawkins.^[16] As the 19th century faded into the new 20th century, Tennessee voters still preferred the Democratic Party. However, the new century would test that allegiance to voting straight Democratic.

Around 1900 the Temperance movement had really started to gain momentum in the state, and by 1908 the prohibitionists were had a powerful ally in newspaper publisherEdward Carmack.^[17] Carmack was challenging Democratic Governor Malcom Patterson who was against Prohibition, and the election was bitter until the very end when Patterson narrowly beat out Carmack.^[17] After the election, Carmack was gunned down in Nashville, and Democratic Governor Malcom Patterson would eventually pardon the man who shot Carmack. As a result of this, Republicans would recapture the Governor's office in 1911 when Republican Ben Hooper was elected.^[17]

By the 1920s Tennessee's Democratic control on both the federal and state level began to crack, when RepublicanWarren G. Harding become the first Republican candidate for president to carry Tennessee sinceUlysses S. Grant in1868.^[2][17] During the late 20's and early 30's, highly regard members of the Democratic Party in Tennessee began to be recognized on a national level.Jo Byrns fromRobertson County becameSpeaker of the House during PresidentFranklin Roosevelt's administration, and^[18]Cordell Hull fromPickett County Tennessee becameSecretary of State and was one of the architects behind the creation of theUnited Nations.^[19]

The Democratic Party in Tennessee was still the dominant party throughout theNew Deal era, and gave rise to thepolitical bosses in bothMemphis andNashville.^[17] In Memphis,E.H. Crump rose to power using his influence statewide politics to build political power in Memphis and to get folks that he approved of elected to office. He welded a lot of power until the mid-1940s before his influence began to wane and finally ended in the 1950s.

In the 1950s, Tennessee voters began shifting away from theDemocratic Party as theCivil Rights Movement began to pick up steam. Since 1952, Tennessee has only voted Democratic in Presidential Election four times in1964,1976,1992, and1996.^[20] Since the late 1960s Republicans began to chip away at the control that the Democratic Party held in the state starting in 1967 whenHoward Baker was elected to theUS Senate,^[21] followed byBill Brock's election to theUS Senate^[21] and with the election ofWinfield Dunn to the Governor's office in 1971.^[16]

Democratic Control continued to wane throughout the remainder of the 20th century as Republicans continued to gain traction with conservatives in the state. By 2000, Tennessee was in the spotlight again, this time for election between thenVice PresidentAl Gore ofCarthage, Tennessee andGeorge W. Bush ofTexas.^[22] Gore campaigned heavily throughout the state, but by the time the polls had closed George W. Bush had picked up the state's electoral votes.^[23]

After 2000, the Democratic Party's control continued to slip, and the last time a Democrat won statewide was in 2006 when then Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen had won re-election.^[24] After 2011, the Democratic Party was fully out of power for the first time sinceReconstruction.^[3] Since then, the Party is considered to be irrelevant in Tennessee Politics as Republicans have firm control over state government.^[25]

On April 6, 2023, three DemocratsRep. Justin Jones,Rep. Gloria Johnson, andRep. Justin J. Pearson faced expulsion from the Tennessee House of Representatives, the first since Franklin Republican Jeremy Durham was expelled in 2016.^[26] It was over Jones, Pearson, and Johnson's protest for gun violence prevention and them standing in the well of the House. SpeakerCameron Sexton ofCrossville compared their protest to the attack on theUS Capitol onJanuary 6, 2021.^[27] Republicans voted to expel bothJustin Jones andJustin J. Pearson from the House, while voting to not expel KnoxvilleRep. Gloria Johnson.^[26] Subsequently, Jones and Pearson were both sent back to the House by both their local governments and by voters in their respective districts.^{[28][29][30][31]}

AfterPresident Joe Biden decided to end hisre-election campaign, Tennessee's delegation to the2024 Democratic National Convention became the first state delegation to endorseVice President Kamala Harris and her 2024Presidential Campaign.^[32]

Currently Tennessee's Congressional Delegation contains only one Democrat out of the state's nineU.S. House of Representatives seats. Prior to the2022 Midterm Elections, the Republican Super Majority redrew Nashville into three Congressional Districts to ensure that they have a significant Super Majority in Tennessee's Congressional delegation.^[33] The last timeTennessee's Congressional Delegation had a plurality ofDemocrats was as recent as2010 when Tennessee Democrats controlled 5 out of the state's 9 House Seats.^[34]

Tennessee Democratic Congressional Delegation

District	Member	Photo
9th Congressional District	Steve Cohen

Currently Tennessee does not have an elected Democrat statewide. Tennessee has not elected a Democrat statewide since formerGovernorPhil Bredesen won re-election in 2006.^[24]

Since 2011, Tennessee Democrats have been in a Super Minority in both theTennessee House of Representatives andTennessee Senate.^[3] Currently Tennessee Democrats occupy 24 seats in theTennessee State House and 6 seats in theTennessee State Senate.^[35][36]

Tennessee House Democratic Leadership

Position	State House District	Member	Photo
Minority Leader[37]	District 87[38]	Karen Camper
Caucus Chairman[37]	District 55[39]	John Ray Clemmons
Assistant Minority Leader[37]	District 58[40]	Harold Love Jr.
Caucus Vice Chairman[37]	District 56[41]	Bob Freeman
Minority Floor Leader[37]	District 91[42]	Torrey Harris
Assistant Floor Leader[37]	District 60[43]	Shaundelle Brooks
Minority Whip[37]	District 15[44]	Sam McKenzie
Caucus Secretary[37]	District 28[45]	Yusuf Hakeem
Caucus Treasurer[37]	District 67[46]	Ronnie Glynn
Minority Leader Pro Tempore[37]	District 88[47]	Larry J. Miller

Tennessee Senate Democratic Leadership

Position	State Senate District	Member	Photo
Minority Leader[48]	District 29[49]	Raumesh Akbari
Caucus Chairman[48]	District 33[50]	London Lamar

• Nashville-Davidson County:Freddie O'Connell
• Memphis:Paul Young
• Shelby County:Lee Harris
• Knoxville:Indya Kincannon
• Clarksville:Joe Pitts

The Tennessee Democratic Party's leadership consists of a Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer who are elected by the State Executive Committee.^[51] The State's Executive Committee consists of one man and one woman from each State Senate District.^[52] On January 25, 2024, the Tennessee Democratic Party's State Executive Committee elected Rachel Campbell^[53] to be Chair of the Tennessee Democratic Party, along with Dr. J. Nathan Higdon as Vice Chair, Ryan Scofield as Secretary, and Carol V. Abney as Treasurer.

• Chairman – Rachel Campbell^[54]
• Vice Chairwoman – Dr. J. Nathan Higdon^[54]
• Treasurer – Carol V. Abney^[54]
• Secretary – Ryan Scofield^[54]
• Tennessee Senate Caucus Leader –Sen. London Lamar^[54]
• Tennessee House Caucus Leader –Rep. John Ray Clemmons^[54]
• East Tennessee Regional Vice Chairs
  • Terry Marek^[54]
  • Debbie Harley-McClaskey^[54]
• Middle Tennessee Regional Vice Chairs
  • Lee Jones^[54]
  • Bobby Bush^[54]
• West Tennessee Regional Vice Chairs
  • Tammy Floyd Wade^[54]
  • Dave Cambron^[54]

The Tennessee Democratic Party's Executive Committee consists of 66 elected members from each of Tennessee's 33 Senatorial Districts. Currently the Executive Committee has seven ex-officio members that represents groups that "facilitate communication between the bodies and to advance goals of Democrats in the State of Tennessee."^[51]

Here is the current list of ex-officio members of the TNDP Executive Committee. These members represent other Democratic organizations in the state of Tennessee.

• Rachel Campbell– Chair^[54]
• Dr. J. Nathan Higdon – Vice Chair^[54]
• Bill Owen – East Tennessee^[54]
• Carol V. Abney – Middle Tennessee^[54]
• Deborah Reed – West Tennessee^[54]

• Tennessee Republican Party
• Political party strength in Tennessee

• Official website

• Tennessee Democratic Party
• Democratic Party (United States) by state
• Political parties in Tennessee
• 1826 establishments in Tennessee

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