I’m a gun owning Tennessean voting blue all the way down the ticket this November, because
Tennessee has one of the highest rates of gun deaths in the country, but the state has only a few basic laws aimed at reducing gun violence. Legislators have weakened the state’s policies, eliminating the carry permitting requirement, allowing nearly anyone in the state to carry loaded firearms in public, concealed or open, without a background check, permit, or safety training. After the school shooting in Nashville in 2023, lawmakers failed to pass any meaningful gun safety legislation. https://everytownresearch.org/rankings/state/tennessee/
TN Republicans have been compromised by Russia https://tennesseelookout.com/2020/09/08/marsha-blackburn-is-getaway-driver-for-russian-meddling/
The TN state legislature was gerrymandered into existence. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2022/jan/25/nashville-tennessee-gerrymandering-congress-republicans
TN Republicans attempted to privatize public education. https://tennesseelookout.com/2023/11/28/gov-pushes-private-school-vouchers-for-all-students-statewide/
TN Republicans passed an abortion ban (2022) https://www.abortionfinder.org/abortion-guides-by-state/abortion-in-tennessee#
You can be prosecuted if you assist someone with transportation to a state that allows abortion. https://apnews.com/article/d76d3bf62d96dfd9cf0e6895a738939d
Tennessee allows officials to refuse to perform same-sex marriages. (2024) https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/new-tennessee-law-allows-officials-refuse-perform-sex-marriages-rcna140011
State law requires all law enforcement authorities in the state to contact federal immigration officials regarding the immigration status of “any individual.”(2024) https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/acts/113/pub/pc0716.pdf
TN is in the top ten states for book banning. https://www.nashvillescene.com/news/coverstory/book-censorship-in-tennessee/article_4ec9cf88-00ee-11ef-9801-1f19b666a10a.html
Tn state leg. is ANTI-democratic https://www.governing.com/politics/tennessees-legislature-dissolves-into-chaos. And https://campaignlegal.org/update/tennessee-three-proceedings-are-just-tip-states-anti-democracy-iceberg
TN Republican politicians do not work for The People. https://www.tennessean.com/story/opinion/contributors/2024/06/27/tennessee-lawmakers-favored-profits-over-people/74077122007/
Favors for private prisons https://tennesseelookout.com/2024/07/23/private-prison-operator-holds-close-ties-with-lawmakers-as-it-sidesteps-state-law/
Twenty one percent of TNs Black population is ineligible to vote due to a felony conviction. Rights restoration is expensive and time consuming. https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000009392729/tennessee-voter-felony-convictions.html
Tennessee ranks as one of the worst states in the country for its inability to protect the rights of children in the justice system. https://www.propublica.org/article/the-kids-of-rutherford-county-reporters-essay
Dozens of TN state lawmakers belong to organizations that are credited with advising Project 2025. https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2024/08/07/project-2025-tennessee-lawmakers-conservative-groups-gop/74489123007/
TN lawmakers plan for Nashville’s Cop City https://www.nashvillescene.com/arts_culture/adviceking/law-enforcement-training-academy/article_0fadfabc-71f7-11ee-9a78-c3eae2af2f57.html
Housing costs keep rising, home ownership is dropping. https://tennesseelookout.com/2022/08/22/home-ownership-and-the-american-dream-are-crushed-by-real-estate-investment-trusts/
Oh, there’s the Nazis. https://apnews.com/article/193fddb42fe3f5d577ffaa6a3ab10b3f
And white supremacists. https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/07/15/tennessee-just-showed-that-white-supremacy-is-alive-well/
It could be harder to join a Union. https://southernstatesmillwrights.org/2023/03/tennessee-bill-would-limit-ways-to-form-a-union/
Eight elected representatives from Tennessee voted to not certify the 2020 Electoral College results:
Diana Harshbarger (1st District)
Tim Burchett (2nd District)
Chuck Fleischmann (3rd District)
Scott DesJarlais (4th District)
David Kustoff (8th District)
Mark Green (7th District)
https://electiondeniers.org/tennessee
Both TN Senators:
Marsha Blackburn and Bill Haggerty https://wpln.org/post/tennessee- congressional-delegation-sheltering-in-place-after-capitol-under-siege-by-trump-
Support these candidates in TN:
Rep. Gloria Johnson (US Senate) https://www.votegloriajohnson.com/meet-gloria/
Meghan Barry (TN-07 vs Green) https://www.meganbarryforcongress.com/issues
Maryam Abolfazli (TN-05 vs Ogles) https://www.maryamforcongress.com/
Jane George (TN-02 vs Burchett) https://janegeorgetn.com/home
Allie Phillips (State Senate TN-75 vs Burkhart). https://www.allie4tn.com/
Wesley Adkins (TN-25 vs Sexton) https://www.adkinsfortn.com/our-platform
There are so many more …https://ballotpedia.org/Democratic_Party_primaries_in_Tennessee,_2024