Expelled Tennessee Democrats Win Back State Legislature Seats

Facts

• Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, the two Democratic Tennessee state representatives who were expelled by Republicans in April for protesting gun violence on the Tenn. House floor, have been reelected to their old seats following elections Thursday.¹
• Though they were reinstated on an interim basis by local officials, Jones, from Nashville, had to defeat Republican candidate Laura Nelson, while Pearson, from Memphis, defeated independent Jeff Johnston. Both districts strongly lean towards Democrats.²
• Jones, Pearson, and their colleague Rep. Gloria Johnson led the protest without approval days after a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville that saw three children and three adults killed. The demonstration led to outside protesters entering the statehouse.³
• The ouster of the pair drew national attention because Jones and Pearson, who are Black, were voted out of office by the GOP-led House, while Johnson, who is White, barely avoided removal.⁴
• The expulsion, which one Republican strategist called a "disaster," also backfired on the House majority, with Jones and Pearson raising a combined $2M through 70.4K donations for their reelection campaigns. Meanwhile, Nelson raised just $34K while Johnston collected under $400.⁵
• After learning of his impending victory, Jones addressed Republican House Speaker Cameron Sexton on X, formerly known as Twitter, writing: "Well, Mr. Speaker, the People have spoken. The FIND OUT era of politics is just beginning. See you August 21st for special session."¹

Sources: ¹NBC, ²Guardian, ³ITN, ⁴Wall Street Journal, and ⁵Washington Examiner.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by WION. The Tennessee GOP's expulsion vote certainly did backfire, as "the Justins" now have even more influence than ever before. What did they think would happen after they kicked out the two officeholders with enough charisma and popularity to bring their constituents down to the statehouse for a peaceful demonstration? Voters are tired of seeing people shot dead due to lax gun laws and an authoritarian-leaning GOP, so the Justin movement is just beginning.
• Republican narrative, as provided by Federalist. First and foremost, the expulsion was not racist, as Gloria Johnston never screamed on the House floor, let alone into a bullhorn, as her colleagues did. The Tennessee House has a code of conduct for a reason — to prevent mobs like the one summoned by Jones and Pearson from disrupting the business of lawmakers. Whether these democrats regained their seats or not, the GOP should be proud that it stood up to the woke, unruly mob.

Predictions