Tennessee House of Representatives

The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.

Tennessee House of Representatives
Tennessee General Assembly
Type
Type	Lower house
Term limits	None
History
New session started	January 14, 2025
Leadership
Speaker	Cameron Sexton (R) since August 23, 2019
Speaker pro tempore	Pat Marsh (R) since January 12, 2021
Majority Leader	William Lamberth (R) since January 8, 2019
Minority Leader	Karen Camper (D) since January 8, 2019
Structure
Seats	99
Political groups	Majority   Republican (75) Minority   Democratic (24)
Length of term	2 years
Authority	Article III, Tennessee Constitution
Salary	$24,316/year + per diem, employee benefits, travel reimbursement[1]
Elections
Last election	November 8, 2022
Next election	November 5, 2024
Redistricting	Legislative Control
Meeting place
House of Representatives Chamber Tennessee State Capitol Nashville, Tennessee
Website
Tennessee House of Representatives
Rules
Permanent Rules of Order for the 113th General Assembly

Constitutional requirements

According to the state constitution of 1870, this body is to consist of 99 members elected for two-year terms. In every even-numbered year, elections for state representative are conducted simultaneously with the elections for U.S. Representative and other offices; the primary election being held on the first Thursday in August. Seats which become vacant, such as through death, resignation, or expulsion, are filled either: by the county commission (or metropolitan county council) of the home county of the member vacating the seat if less than a year remains in the seat's term; if more than a year remains in the term, a special election is held for the balance of the term.^[2][3]

Districts

Members are elected from single-member districts. The districts are traditionally numbered consecutively from east to west and north to south across the state; however, in recent redistricting this convention has not always been strictly adhered to, despite a constitutional provision requiring districts to be numbered consecutively.

Districts are required to be reapportioned every ten years following the federal census in order to be of substantially equal population. However, from 1902 until 1962, the General Assembly ignored this provision. It was estimated that by that point that some districts in the Memphis area had approximately ten times the population of some in rural areas. In 1962 this issue was taken to court. Despite U.S. courts having traditionally declined to rule on such issues, the U.S. Supreme Court opted to hear this case and ruled that the legislature had to comply with the state constitution, as its failure to do so was in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (see Baker v. Carr). Subsequent litigation has further refined the rules regarding this; in the late 1990s a majority-black district in rural West Tennessee was required to be created.

The 1960s redistricting was credited by some observers with creating the first Republican majority in the Tennessee House since Reconstruction in 1968; this situation lasted only until the next election in 1970. 1970 also marked the first election of a Republican governor in a half century and saw both houses of the legislature begin to assert themselves as a counterbalance to executive authority; prior to this time legislators had not had their own staffs or even their own offices and were largely at the mercy of what the governor's staff chose to tell them and in many ways were often something of a "rubber stamp."

Speaker of the House

See also: List of Speakers of the Tennessee House of Representatives

The Speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the House. The Speaker is elected to a two-year term at the beginning of the 1st half of each session of the Tennessee General Assembly. Additionally, the Speaker is second in line for succession to the governorship, after the Speaker of the Senate, in the event of such need. The Speaker appoints members to all committees as well. Even though the Speaker does not have to make committee assignments proportional to the party composition, usually that discretion is used when determining such. Usually, consideration of the abilities, preferences, party representation, and seniority of the members are taken into account. The chairperson, vice chairperson, and secretary of each committee also are chosen by the Speaker and must be given the same considerations in their selection. The Speaker is a voting member of all standing committees of the House, as is the Speaker pro Tempore. The Speaker also serves as co-chairperson of the Joint Legislative Services Committee and must approve, in concurrence with the Speaker of the Senate, the directors of the offices of Legislative Information Services, Legal Services, Legislative Administration, and Legislative Budget Analysis. Additionally, the Speaker is in charge of all facilities, professional and clerical staff, and custodians and security personnel of the House.^[4] The current speaker is Cameron Sexton, who represents Tennessee's 25th district.^[5]

Composition of the 113th General Assembly (2022–present)

Affiliation	Party (shading indicates majority caucus)		Total
	Republican	Democratic		Vacant
Beginning of 113th General Assembly	75	24	99	0
April 6, 2023[6]	75	22	97	2
April 10, 2023[7]	75	23	98	1
April 12, 2023[8]	75	24	99	0
April 20, 2023[9]	74	24	98	1
May 11, 2023[10]	75	24	99	0
June 4, 2023[11]	74	23	98	1
June 20, 2023[12]	75	24	99	0
Latest voting share	75.76%	24.24%

Officers

• Speaker of the House: Cameron Sexton (R)^[13]
• Speaker Pro Tempore: Pat Marsh (R)
• Deputy Speaker: Curtis Johnson (R)

Majority party (R)	Leadership position	Minority party (D)
William Lamberth	Leader	Karen Camper
Mark Cochran	Assistant Leader	Harold M. Love Jr.
Jeremy Faison	Caucus Chairperson	Vincent Dixie
Brandon Ogles	Caucus Vice Chairperson	Bob Freeman
Johnny Garrett	Whip	Jason Powell
Paul Sherrell	Floor Leader	Bill Beck
Michele Carringer	Caucus Secretary	London Lamar
Rebecca Alexander	Caucus Treasurer	Jesse Chism

Members as of 2023

District	Name	Party	First elected	Residence	Counties represented
1	John Crawford	Republican	2016	Kingsport	Part of Sullivan
2	Bud Hulsey	Republican	2014	Kingsport	Part of Sullivan
3	Timothy Hill	Republican	2023	Blountville	Johnson and parts of Carter, Hawkins, and Sullivan
4	John Holsclaw Jr.	Republican	2014	Johnson City	Unicoi and part of Carter
5	David B. Hawk	Republican	2002	Greeneville	Greene
6	Tim Hicks	Republican	2020	Jonesborough	Part of Washington
7	Rebecca Alexander	Republican	2020	Jonesborough	Part of Washington
8	Jerome Moon	Republican	2017	Maryville	Part of Blount
9	Gary Hicks	Republican	2016	Rogersville	Hancock and parts of Claiborne and Hawkins
10	Rick Eldridge	Republican	2018	Morristown	Grainger and part Hamblen
11	Jeremy Faison	Republican	2010	Cosby	Cocke, and parts of Jefferson and Hamblen
12	Dale Carr	Republican	2012	Sevierville	Part of Sevier
13	Robert Stevens	Republican	2022	Smyrna	Part of Rutherford
14	Jason Zachary	Republican	2015	Knoxville	Part of Knox
15	Sam McKenzie	Democratic	2020	Knoxville	Part of Knox
16	Michele Carringer	Republican	2020	Knoxville	Part of Knox
17	Andrew Farmer	Republican	2012	Sevierville	Parts of Jefferson and Sevier
18	Elaine Davis	Republican	2022	Knoxville	Part of Knox
19	Dave Wright	Republican	2018	Corryton	Part of Knox
20	Bryan Richey	Republican	2022	Maryville	Part of Blount
21	Lowell Russell	Republican	2018	Vonore	Parts of Loudon and Monroe
22	Dan Howell	Republican	2014	Cleveland	Meigs, Polk and part of Bradley
23	Mark Cochran	Republican	2018	Englewood	McMinn and part of Monroe
24	Kevin Raper	Republican	2022	Cleveland	Part of Bradley
25	Cameron Sexton	Republican	2010	Crossville	Cumberland and part of Putnam
26	Greg Martin	Republican	2022	Hixson	Part of Hamilton
27	Patsy Hazlewood	Republican	2014	Signal Mountain	Part of Hamilton
28	Yusuf Hakeem	Democratic	2018	Chattanooga	Part of Hamilton
29	Greg Vital	Republican	2021	Harrison	Part of Hamilton
30	Esther Helton	Republican	2018	East Ridge	Part of Hamilton
31	Ron Travis	Republican	2012	Dayton	Bledsoe, Sequatchie, Rhea and Van Buren
32	Monty Fritts	Republican	2012	Kingston	Parts of Roane and part of Loudon
33	John Ragan	Republican	2010	Oak Ridge	Part of Anderson
34	Tim Rudd	Republican	2016	Murfreesboro	Part of Rutherford
35	William Slater	Republican	2022	Gallatin	Trousdale and part of Sumner
36	Dennis Powers	Republican	2010	Jacksboro	Campbell, Union and part of Claiborne
37	Charlie Baum	Republican	2018	Murfreesboro	Part of Rutherford
38	Kelly Keisling	Republican	2010	Byrdstown	Macon, Clay, Pickett, Scott, and part of Fentress
39	Iris Rudder	Republican	2018	Winchester	Franklin and Marion
40	Michael Hale	Republican	2022	Smithville	Cannon, DeKalb, Jackson, Smith, and part of Wilson
41	Ed Butler	Republican	2022	Cookeville	Overton, Morgan and parts of Anderson, Fentress, and Roane
42	Ryan Williams	Republican	2010	Cookeville	Part of Putnam
43	Paul Sherrell	Republican	2016	Sparta	Warren and White
44	William Lamberth	Republican	2012	Portland	Part of Sumner
45	Johnny Garrett	Republican	2018	Goodlettsville	Part of Sumner
46	Clark Boyd	Republican	2018	Lebanon	Part of Wilson
47	Rush Bricken	Republican	2018	Tullahoma	Coffee and Grundy
48	Bryan Terry	Republican	2018	Murfreesboro	Part of Rutherford
49	Mike Sparks	Republican	2010	Smyrna	Part of Rutherford
50	Bo Mitchell	Democratic	2012	Nashville	Part of Davidson
51	Aftyn Behn	Democratic	2023	Nashville	Part of Davidson
52	Justin Jones	Democratic	2023	Nashville	Part of Davidson
53	Jason Powell	Democratic	2012	Nashville	Part of Davidson
54	Vincent Dixie	Democratic	2018	Nashville	Part of Davidson
55	John Ray Clemmons	Democratic	2014	Nashville	Part of Davidson
56	Bob Freeman	Democratic	2018	Nashville	Part of Davidson
57	Susan Lynn	Republican	2013	Mt. Juliet	Part of Wilson
58	Harold M. Love Jr.	Democratic	2012	Nashville	Part of Davidson
59	Caleb Hemmer	Democratic	2022	Nashville	Part of Davidson
60	Darren Jernigan	Democratic	2012	Old Hickory	Part of Davidson
61	Gino Bulso	Republican	2022	Brentwood	Part of Williamson
62	Pat Marsh	Republican	2009	Shelbyville	Bedford, Moore, and part of Lincoln
63	Jake McCalmon	Republican	2022	Franklin	Part of Williamson
64	Scott Cepicky	Republican	2018	Culleoka	Part of Maury
65	Sam Whitson	Republican	2016	Franklin	Part of Williamson
66	Sabi "Doc" Kumar	Republican	2014	Springfield	Robertson
67	Ronnie Glynn	Democratic	2022	Clarksville	Part of Montgomery
68	Curtis Johnson	Republican	2004	Clarksville	Part of Montgomery
69	Jody Barrett	Republican	2022	Dickson	Hickman, Lewis and part of Dickson
70	Clay Doggett	Republican	2018	Pulaski	Giles and parts of Lawrence and Lincoln
71	Kip Capley	Republican	2022	Summertown	Wayne and parts of Hardin, Lawrence, and Maury
72	Kirk Haston	Republican	2018	Lobelville	Henderson, Chester, Decatur, Perry, and part of Hardin
73	Chris Todd	Republican	2018	Humboldt	Part of Madison
74	Jay Reedy	Republican	2014	Erin	Benton, Houston, Humphreys, Stewart, and part of Henry
75	Jeff Burkhart	Republican	2022	Clarksville	Part of Montgomery
76	Tandy Darby	Republican	2020	Greenfield	Weakley and parts of Henry and Carroll
77	Rusty Grills	Republican	2020	Newbern	Dyer, Lake and part of Obion
78	Mary Littleton	Republican	2012	Dickson	Cheatham and part of Dickson
79	Brock Martin	Republican	2022	Huntingdon	Parts of Carroll, Gibson and Henderson
80	Johnny Shaw	Democratic	2000	Bolivar	Parts of Hardeman, Haywood and Madison
81	Debra Moody	Republican	2012	Covington	Tipton and part of Haywood
82	Chris Hurt	Republican	2018	Halls	Crockett, Lauderdale and parts of Gibson and Obion
83	Mark White	Republican	2010	Memphis	Part of Shelby
84	Joe Towns	Democratic	1994	Memphis	Part of Shelby
85	Jesse Chism	Democratic	2018	Memphis	Part of Shelby
86	Justin J. Pearson	Democratic	2023	Memphis	Part of Shelby
87	Karen Camper	Democratic	2008	Memphis	Part of Shelby
88	Larry Miller	Democratic	1992	Memphis	Part of Shelby
89	Justin Lafferty	Republican	2018	Knoxville	Part of Knox
90	Gloria Johnson	Democratic	2012	Knoxville	Part of Knox
91	Torrey Harris	Democratic	2020	Memphis	Part of Shelby
92	Todd Warner	Republican	2020	Lewisburg	Marshall and part of Williamson
93	G. A. Hardaway	Democratic	2006	Memphis	Part of Shelby
94	Ron Gant	Republican	2016	Rossville	Fayette, McNairy and part of Hardeman
95	Kevin Vaughan	Republican	2017	Collierville	Part of Shelby
96	Dwayne Thompson	Democratic	2016	Cordova	Part of Shelby
97	John Gillespie	Republican	2020	Memphis	Part of Shelby
98	Antonio Parkinson	Democratic	2011	Memphis	Part of Shelby
99	Tom Leatherwood	Republican	2018	Arlington	Part of Shelby

House committees

Committees, subcommittees, and their leadership for the 112th General Assembly are as follows:^[14]

Standing committees

Committees	Chair	Vice Chair	Subcommittees
Agriculture and Natural Resources	Rep. Curtis Halford (R)	Rep. Rusty Grills (R)	Agriculture and Natural Resources, Chair: Rep. Chris Todd (R)
Calendar and Rules	Rep. Jason Zachary (R)	Rep. Lowell Russell (R)
Civil Justice	Rep. Andrew Farmer (R)	Rep. Darren Jernigan (D)	Civil Justice, Chair: Rep. Andrew Farmer (R) Children and Family Affairs, Chair: Rep. Mary Littleton (R)
Commerce	Rep. Kevin Vaughn (R)	Rep. Rush Bricken (R)	Banking and Consumer Affairs, Chair: Rep. Dennis Powers (R) Business and Utilities, Chair: Rep. Clark Boyd (R)
Criminal Justice	Vacant	Rep. Jerry Sexton (R)	Criminal Justice, Chair: Rep. Clay Doggett (R)
Education Administration	Rep. Mark White (R)	Rep. Chris Hurt (R)	K-12, Chair: Rep. Kirk Haston (R) Higher Education, Chair: Rep. Justin Lafferty (R)
Education Instruction	Rep. Debra Moody (R)	Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver (R)	Education Instruction, Chair: Rep. Scott Cepicky (R)
Finance, Ways, and Means	Rep. Patsy Hazelwood (R)	Rep. Charlie Baum (R)	Finance, Ways, and Means, Chair: Rep. Gary. Hicks (R) Appropriations , Chair: Rep. Ryan Williams (R)
Government Operations	Rep. John Ragan (R)	Rep. Jay Reedy (R)
Health	Rep. Bryan Terry (R)	Rep. Tom Leatherwood (R)	Health, Chair: Rep. Bob Ramsey (R)
Insurance	Rep. Sabi Kumar (R)	Rep. Iris Rudder (R)	Insurance, Chair: Rep. David Hawk (R)
Local	Rep. John Crawford (R)	Rep. Dave Wright (R)	Cities, Chair: Rep. Jerome Moon (R) Elections and Campaign Finance, Chair: Rep. Tim Rudd (R) Property and Planning, Chair: Rep. Dale Carr (R)
Naming and Designating	Rep. John Mark Windle (D)	Rep. David Byrd (R)
State	Rep. Kelly Keisling (R)	Rep. Rick Eldridge (R)	Corrections, Chair: Rep. Bud Hulsey (R) Departments and Agencies, Chair: Rep. John Holsclaw (R) Public Service, Chair: Rep. Esther Helton (R)
Transportation	Rep. Dan Howell (R)	Rep. Mark Hall (R)	Transportation, Chair: Rep. Sam Whitson (R)

Select committees

Committees	Chair	Subcommittees
Rules	Rep. Pat Marsh (R)
Ethics	Rep. Curtis Johnson (R)	Ethics, Chair: Rep. Pat Marsh (R)

Expulsion of members

The Tennessee House of Representatives requires a two-thirds majority of the total membership to expel another representative.^[15] Since the Civil War, ten representatives have been expelled.^[16] Six representatives were expelled in 1866 for attempting to prevent passage of the 14th Amendment, which granted citizenship to former slaves.^[17] In 1980, Republican representative Robert Fisher was expelled for bribery.^[18] Republican representative Jeremy Durham was expelled in 2016 for sexual misconduct.^[19] Representatives Justin Jones and Justin J. Pearson were expelled in 2023 for violating decorum rules by leading a gun control protest on the House floor during a legislative session.^[20] Both Jones and Pearson were later reinstated.^[21] Representative Gloria Johnson also participated in the demonstration, but avoided expulsion by one vote.^[22]

Education level among members

Among Republicans, around 30% of all members hold no degree beyond high school completion, less than 20% hold a Master's or other post baccalaureate degree, and less than 10% have a law degree. Among Democrats, of whom there are a substantially lower number, 15% hold no degree beyond high school, around 30% hold a Master's or other post baccalaureate degree, and 25% have a law degree.^[23]

Diversity among Representatives

November 2020 saw the election of first openly LGBT people ever to hold seats in Tennessee's state house of representatives,^[24] Democrat Torrey Harris and Republican Eddie Mannis.^[25] Before November 3, 2020, Tennessee was one of just five states in the nation (others being Alaska, Delaware, Louisiana and Mississippi) to have never elected an out LGBT person to its state legislature.^[26] Eddie Mannis did not seek reelection after a single term, citing bullying by the Republican caucus.^[27]

Of its 99 members,^[28] twenty-one were women^[29] in 2020. Representatives Harold Love^[30] and Raumesh Akbari hold leadership roles in the National Black Caucus of State Legislators,^[31] in which eight Tennessee state lawmakers are members. Akbari is also a State Director with Women in Government, as is Brenda Gilmore.^[32]

Past composition of the House of Representatives

Main article: Political party strength in Tennessee

See also

• Tennessee Senate
• List of Tennessee General Assemblies

Notes

References

1. "2022 Legislator Compensation". www.ncsl.org.
2. Article II, Section 15 of the Constitution of Tennessee (1870)
3. McCullough, Erin (April 10, 2023). "Can Nashville and Memphis legally reappoint Justin Jones and Justin Pearson?". WREG-TV. Memphis, TN. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
4. "Speaker of the House of Representatives – Tennessee General Assembly". www.capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
5. Allison, Natalie; Ebert, Joel. "House Speaker Cameron Sexton officially sworn in, succeeding ousted Speaker Glen Casada". The Tennessean. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
6. Chappell, Bill; Romo, Vanessa. "Tennessee House votes to expel the first of 3 Democratic members over gun protest". NPR. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
7. Cochrane, Emily (April 10, 2023). "Expelled Democratic Lawmaker Is Sworn Back in to Tennessee House". The New York Times.
8. Shelby County reappoints Justin J. Pearson to House seat
9. "Rep. Scotty Campbell Resigns". News Channel 5 Nashville (WTVF). April 20, 2023.
10. "Former Rep. Timothy Hill appointed as interim to fill Scotty Campbell vacancy in House". The Tennessean. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
11. "Democratic Nashville lawmaker Bill Beck dies from heart attack at 61". AP News. June 5, 2023. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
12. "Nashville council appoint Anthony Davis to state House". Axios. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
13. "House Leadership – TN General Assembly". www.capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
14. "Legislative House Committees – TN General Assembly". www.capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
15. "Article 2, Section 12" (PDF). Constitution of Tennessee. 1870.
16. Gang, Duane W. (April 4, 2023). "Tennessee legislative expulsions: From sexual misconduct to opposing rights of former slaves". The Tennessean. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
17. "TENNESSEE: Six Members of the Legislature Expelled--The Revenue Officer Robbed". The New York Times. July 25, 1866. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
18. Daughtrey, Larry (January 15, 1980). "House Votes To Expel Fisher". The Tennessean. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
19. "Tennessee House expels GOP lawmaker accused in sexual harassment cases". CBS News. Associated Press. September 13, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
20. Mattsie, Jonathan; Kruesl, Kimberlee (April 7, 2023). "Tennessee's House expels 2 of 3 Democrats over guns protest". Associated Press. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
21. Mattsie, Jonathan (June 16, 2023). "After expulsion and reinstatement, Tennessee Reps. Pearson, Jones advance past Democratic primaries". ABC News. Associated Press. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
22. Dennis, Angela; Whetstone, Tyler (April 6, 2023). "Rep. Gloria Johnson survives Tennessee House expulsion vote after peaceful gun control demonstration". Knoxville News Sentinel. Gannett. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
23. "House Members – TN General Assembly". www.capitol.tn.gov. Retrieved March 30, 2019.
24. Stockard, Sam (November 4, 2020). "Legislature sees little change but first LGBT members". Tennessee Lookout. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
25. "For The First Time, Tennessee Voters Elect Two LGBT State Lawmakers". WPLN News. Nashville Public Radio. November 4, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
26. "Tennessee – yes, Tennessee – just elected out LGBT+ lawmakers for the first time". PinkNews. November 4, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
27. "Knox TN Today". November 17, 2022.
28. "Tennessee State Legislature – System". system.uslegal.com. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
29. "Women in State Legislatures for 2020". www.ncsl.org. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
30. "Harold Love". Ballotpedia. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
31. "NBCSL | State Leadership". nbcsl.org. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
32. "Gilmore & Akbari elected to leadership role with Women In Government". Nashville PRIDE, Inc. January 20, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2021.

External links

• Official website

36.1656°N 86.7841°W / 36.1656; -86.7841