The residents of state Senate District 29, which runs from top to bottom of the
Shelby County riverfront, will just have to wait a while for representation in
the Tennessee General Assemblyย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
After a dramatic week in which both of last year’s major-party contenders ceased
to be immediate prospects for holding the office – one voluntarily, one
involuntarily – and in which the Shelby County Commission decided to put off
deciding on the matter, the seat seemed likely to go unfilled for the duration
of this year’s legislative session.ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
First, in a dramatic and long postponed session of the state Senate in Nashville
last Wednesday, Democrat Ophelia Ford, who was sworn in as the apparent
13-vote winner of a special election last September, became an ex-senator
Wednesday afternoon when her colleagues voted 26-6 to void that election result
as “incurably uncertain.”ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Next, Terry Roland, the
Republican contender in that election, took himself out of the running as a
possible interim replacement at a Monday-morning press conference this week.
Roland, who had been in the Senate gallery when the historic vote occurred last
week, had hinted of his intentions then, suggesting that public hearings be held
before the Shelby County Commission declared a successor to Ford.ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
And finally, later on Monday, the commission concluded intermittent debate on
the matter by shelving plans for a vote on May 8 and scheduled one for May 22
instead. A date that late could actually occur after the completion of the
current legislative session – a point recognized by Republican Bruce Thompson
and Democrat Walter Bailey, each of whom, arguing that otherwise District
29 would go unrepresented, pushed for the earlier voting date.ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Bailey, who wanted assurances from his colleagues that the historicalย “ethnic”
and political character of the predominantly black and Democratic district would
be respected in naming an interim senator, was nevertheless willing to take his
chances without such guarantees.
Ultimately, though, the commission adopted the position of Democrat Julian
Bolton, who said there should be no “rush to judgment.” At a fundraiser for
his 9th District congressional campaign later Monday, Bolton
acknowledged his own concern that the commission, which has a 7-6 Republican
majority, might name a Republican to cast the last few votes for what has been a
traditionally Democratic district.ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Thompson saw the issue differently, maintaining that the closeness of the
disputed election called for a fresh look on the part of all commissioners.
Asked after Monday’s commission meeting about persistent rumors that his refusal
to commit his vote in advance had prompted Roland’s decision to withdraw,
Thompson said only, “I made it clear to everyone that I was keeping an open
mind.”ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย
Under the circumstances, whoever gets appointed on May 22nd is likely
to be regarded as an honorary senator. Among those who have expressed interest
to commissioners about the interim position is Belz Enterprises head Ron Belz,
who has also nursed thoughts of running for city mayor.
Roland and the now deposed Ford are both on the ballot again this year, though
Ford must first defeat Steve Haley in the Democratic primary for a
reprise of last year’s race to occur.
Meanwhile, legal efforts on behalf of Ophelia Ford go on. Fordยs main lawyer, David Cocke, announced at a press conference Tuesday afternoon a new filing with Judge Donald for injunctive relief, incorporating the special state Senate committee report on the contested election, as well as last weekยs testimony before the Senate by the committeeยs counsel, former judge Ben Cantrelll
The new suit is accompanied by a request for expediting judgment, but Cocke acknowledged the unlikelihood of a judicial resolution sooner than two weeksย time.
Along with a request that Judge Donald render last weekยs Senate action ยvoid and unenforceable,ย the new suit seeks to enjoin the Shelby County Commission from acting to replace Ford with an interim appointee.
Cocke said that even the late date adopted by the commission as a time to vote– May 22, by which time the legislature may well have adjourned — would be unacceptable.. “There’s still the matter of constituent service to be performed and standing committees that meet,” he argued.
“I have said to the Senate: You are acting in such a way that it is going to becme a precedent in other legal situations,” Cocke said, adding, “To my mind, the Senate would never had gone to such extremes to oust anybody else.”
