Bill Lee
Republican Tennessee governor; signed map carving Memphis three ways, eliminating Cohen's 9th District on 7 May 2026.
Last refreshed: 19 May 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Can any court reverse Tennessee's signed post-Callais map before the 2026 elections?
Timeline for Bill Lee
Signed new congressional map eliminating the majority-Black 9th district
US Midterms 2026: Tennessee signs map carving Memphis three waysCalled extraordinary legislative session targeting Steve Cohen's TN-9 Memphis seat after Callais ruling
US Midterms 2026: Four states queue maps after Callais rulingWhy did Tennessee's governor call an emergency session after the Callais ruling?
What is an extraordinary legislative session in Tennessee?
Which states moved to redistrict first after the Callais ruling?
Background
Bill Lee is the Republican Governor of Tennessee. Within 24 hours of the Supreme Court's Louisiana v. Callais ruling on 29 April 2026, Lee called an extraordinary legislative session targeting TN-9, the Memphis district held by Steve Cohen, the state's only Democratic congressman. Tennessee became the first state to move on redistricting in the immediate post-Callais cascade, ahead of South Carolina, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Lee, first elected governor in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, has presided over a Republican supermajority legislature. The extraordinary session call signals that Tennessee Republicans view TN-9 as an elimination target; Cohen's majority-minority district was drawn partly under VRA Section 2 requirements that Callais has now undermined.
Tennessee's speed distinguishes Lee from other Republican governors in the post-Callais wave. While Mississippi and South Carolina moved on the same day, Lee acted within hours of the ruling, making Tennessee's session the highest-profile immediate test of how aggressively states will exploit the new legal landscape.
Lee signed Tennessee's new congressional map on 7 May 2026, two days after the special session convened on 5 May. The map carves Memphis and Shelby County across the 5th, 8th and 9th districts, eliminating the majority-Black 9th district held by Steve Cohen. All nine Tennessee districts are now Republican-leaning . The redraw delivers up to two additional Republican House seats by January 2027 without any vote being cast — the seats are structurally locked by map geometry rather than election outcomes.
The Tennessee signing is the most complete post-Callais map execution of the cycle. South Carolina's Senate blocked its own redraw despite House passage and Governor McMaster's pressure , while Mississippi narrowed its session to state Supreme Court districts only. Lee achieved what other Republican governors attempted and failed: a swift legislative session, a signed map, and a complete elimination of the only Democratic congressional district in the state. No legal challenge citing the VRA Section 2 majority-minority requirements has a viable PATH after Callais, though state constitutional challenges remain possible.