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Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris vetoed a resolution Monday from county commissioners that would have put all nine Memphis school board seats up for election in 2026.
The controversial measure to reset school board election dates would have also cut short five current board members’ terms. In a two-line memo sent to commissioners Monday, Harris cited that effect as the reason for his veto.
“Absent an emergency or in the case of criminal misconduct, I do not believe that the terms of elected officials should be shortened,” Harris wrote in the memo obtained by Chalkbeat.
The Shelby County Commission could override the mayor’s veto with eight votes from its 13-member group within the next 30 days. Commissioners voted 7-5 to approve the measure on Sept. 22, but one commissioner was absent during the original vote, according to The Daily Memphian.
Even if the mayor’s veto stands, changes are still coming for school board elections next year. Candidates will face a partisan primary for the first time and new term limits approved by the county commission in August.
MSCS school board members have faced intense scrutiny since voting to oust former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January. Some members have called recent election changes discriminatory and a form of retaliation.
On top of all the local changes, two Tennessee lawmakers are expected to renew their efforts to establish a state-appointed board to take over the district in the spring.
Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org. Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.