Tennessee
Southern US state; Governor Lee called extraordinary session to redraw maps after Callais.
Last refreshed: 7 May 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Can Tennessee redraw TN-9 and survive a legal challenge after Callais?
Timeline for Tennessee
Called extraordinary legislative session to redraw maps targeting TN-9
US Midterms 2026: Four states queue maps after Callais ruling- Why did Tennessee call an extraordinary legislative session in May 2026?
- Governor Bill Lee called the session within 24 hours of the Supreme Court's Callais ruling to redraw congressional maps, specifically targeting Steve Cohen's TN-9 Memphis seat freed from VRA Section 2 majority-minority district requirements.Source: Lowdown reporting
- What is Tennessee's current congressional seat breakdown?
- Tennessee holds nine congressional seats, currently split seven Republican to two Democratic, with Cohen's TN-9 and one other Democratic seat.
- How quickly can Tennessee pass new congressional maps in an extraordinary session?
- An extraordinary session can move faster than the regular calendar because it bypasses standard committee schedules. Tennessee Republicans hold a supermajority and could theoretically pass new maps within days.
- Who is Steve Cohen and why is his seat being targeted?
- Steve Cohen is a ten-term Democratic congressman representing TN-9, a Memphis-anchored majority-Black district. The Callais ruling removed the VRA requirement to preserve such districts, making it a Republican redistricting target.Source: Lowdown reporting
Background
Tennessee entered the post-Callais redistricting cascade within 24 hours of the Supreme Court's 5 May 2026 ruling, when Governor Bill Lee called an extraordinary legislative session specifically targeting Representative Steve Cohen's TN-9 Memphis seat. The move made Tennessee one of the first states to announce formal action, alongside South Carolina and Mississippi, signalling how quickly Republican legislatures moved to exploit the newly freed map-drawing environment.
Tennessee is a deeply Republican state at the state-government level, holding trifecta control since 2011. Its nine congressional seats are currently split 7 Republican to 2 Democratic, with Cohen's Memphis district one of two Democratic holdouts. The extraordinary session powers the legislature to reconvene outside its regular schedule, bypassing the normal committee process that would otherwise slow map adoption.
The targeting of TN-9 is a direct test of how FAR Republican legislatures will go to eliminate minority-majority-anchored Democratic seats following Callais. Cohen, a ten-term incumbent, holds one of the most reliably Democratic seats in the South, and any redrawn map that dismantles TN-9's Memphis core would require court challenge to unwind.