Tennessee Republicans pass map targeting the state’s last Democratic seat

Tennessee lawmakers passed a new congressional map Thursday that projects a potential flip of the state’s final Democratic seat.

The push to redraw Tennessee’s congressional lines could erase the state’s last Democratic foothold in Washington, cementing a 9-0 Republican delegation and raising concerns about the future of black voter representation in Memphis.

Despite strong disruption from Democratic lawmakers, the Republican-controlled Legislature passed the map, submitting the measure to Gov. Bill Lee for his expected signature. The new map targets the 9th Congressional District, the state’s only majority-black district and its last Democratic stronghold.

Republican lawmakers argue the changes reflect the state’s overall political identity. Tennessee has trended increasingly red over the past few election cycles, and the new lines align with the state’s conservative trend.

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Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., presented this 9-0 Republican-favored map for the state after last week’s Supreme Court ruling. (Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn./X)

The legislative session was marked by high tensions and protest tactics from the minority party. As the vote approached, House Democratic lawmakers locked arms and used air horns to drown out proceedings.

The unrest spread to the galleries, where Tennessee State Troopers were called in to maintain order. The police held back demonstrators who tried to reach the chamber while the vote was taking place.

Democrats called the move a direct attack on minority representation. State Sen. London Lamar, a Memphis Democrat, criticized the redistricting, calling the decision a “political monopoly.”

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Sen. Charlane Oliver, a Nashville Democrat, said the state’s political landscape is manufactured. (Madison Thorn/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Lamar told the House that while the GOP may have the votes to pass the map, it lacks the “moral authority” to do so. She called the decision an “insult” to the black community and the city of Memphis, warning that the decision has “awakened a sleeping giant.”

Sen. Charlane Oliver, a Nashville Democrat, echoed those sentiments, saying the state’s political landscape is manufactured. “Tennessee is not a red state,” Oliver argued. “Tennessee is a gerrymandered state. We are a gerrymandered state.”

The map was first introduced Wednesday as part of a broader redistricting campaign backed by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., who is the favored candidate to replace Lee.

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Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., expressed support for the new congressional map. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“I urge our state legislature to reconvene to redistrict another Republican seat in Memphis,” Blackburn previously wrote on X, sharing an image of Tennessee’s new map. “This is essential to cementing @realDonaldTrump’s agenda and America’s golden age.”

“I vowed to make Tennessee a red state, and as governor, I will do everything I can to make that map a reality.”

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Legal challenges are already underway, including a lawsuit filed Thursday by the Tennessee chapter of the NAACP, claiming the map dilutes black voting power and targets the state’s only majority-black district.

Eric Mack of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.