After what amounted to yet another paltry turnout in a local election, most people are turning their attention to more everyday matters — the car note, the mortgage, the approaching holidays, the prospect of yet another Rolling Stones tour, or what-have-you.
Not so for the class of political junkies, who form a major part of those who choose to peer into this space. Many of them are already looking forward to the election year 2024, or even to 2026. Some are still mulling over what happened in 2023. (We’ll get to that in a minute.)
The big deal next year, of course, is the race for the presidency, and most reliable pollsters, commentators, and news gatherers — not to mention the minions of social-media savants — are pretty much in unison about that. It looks to be Biden vs. Trump, and a clear majority of Americans seem to be nothing less than disconsolate about that.
There will be a statewide election, too, and no doubt there will be some interesting legislative races.
Democratic state Representative Gloria Johnson of Knoxville, she of the Tennessee Three, is already well into a campaign against incumbent Republican Marsha Blackburn for the U.S. Senate, and that definitely should generate some buzz.
Closer to home, 9th District Democratic U.S. Representative Steve Cohen says he’s running again, for a 10th term next year, and he’ll be heavily favored, though it’s probable that, as usual, some Republican will hazard a long-odds race against him. Ambitious Democrats will likely bide their time until such time, years hence, as Cohen might opt to retire, and contestants at that point might include Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, state Representative Justin J. Pearson, and state Senator Raumesh Akbari.
Cohen, incidentally, is as frustrated as other House members that the Republicans, who own a bare majority there, can’t seem to decide who, among their number, should be speaker to succeed the now-deposed Kevin McCarthy.
In case you’ve wondered, as I have, whether Cohen and other Democrats, in the interests of bipartisan government, would be willing to help break the logjam by casting votes for an acceptable Republican to be speaker, he says he definitely would, though he doubts that such a nominee could emerge from the GOP caucus.
Looking ahead to 2026, the aforesaid Lee Harris will be term-limited, and at least three Democrats are likely to be aspirants to the job of county mayor — Assessor Melvin Burgess, current County Commissioner Mickell Lowery, and recent city mayor candidate Van Turner.
Just as it was known for years that Turner would at some point seek the job of Memphis mayor, it was also known that he has from time to time considered running for county mayor. A veteran of two terms on the county commission, he certainly has credentials and he allows that, while he’s in no hurry to decide, such a race might be in his future.
For that matter, he hasn’t totally turned his back on the election just held. Turner’s name was among those mentioned as interested parties in the matter vented post-election by defeated council candidate Jerred Price, who wants county Election Coordinator Linda Phillips to give a more complete accounting than she has thus far of the reported pre-election theft of election codes from the parked car of an Election Commission employee.
Though he is not an active part of Price’s effort, Turner agrees that an investigation of some sort is in order.
