He's Running In a District Trump Won By 21 Points. Democrats See an Opening

Democrats' House campaign committee has added Tennessee's 9th District to its Red to Blue list, a sign that Justin Pearson's long-shot bid for Congress is being treated as more than a symbolic protest. Pearson, a Democratic state representative, is challenging Republican state Sen. Brent Taylor in a seat that Donald Trump carried by more than 21 points in 2024. Listed campaigns get money, staff help, training and strategy advice from the party committee, according to Time.

Pearson originally intended to take on Rep. Steven Cohen in a majority-Black Memphis-area district. In May, after the Supreme Court weakened a key Voting Rights Act provision in April, Tennessee's Republican legislature redrew the map, pairing parts of Memphis with 14 rural counties and eliminating the state's only majority-Black district. Civil rights groups have not yet persuaded courts to block it. Time reports that turnout in Shelby County's Democratic House primaries was the highest in a decade, according to the Washington Post.

Cook Political Report still rates the seat Solid Republican, though it projects Democratic gains of five to 15 House seats nationally. A Democratic-aligned group's survey of 400 voters put Pearson four points behind. Pearson cites farmers' anger over tariffs and fuel costs.

Summarized by PolitiKool from Time’s reporting. Read the full story at Time →