Republican State Sen. Brent Taylor is seeking to represent Tennessee’s newly redrawn Ninth Congressional District, a seat that historically served as the state’s sole majority-Black district. Taylor, a white legislator from Memphis, has spent nearly four years in the state senate advancing laws that reduced the authority of local officials elected by many of the district’s residents. His campaign comes after the Tennessee legislature, backed by a Republican supermajority, carved Memphis into three districts in May, a move designed to dilute Democratic voting power in the region.
The redistricting followed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in April that made it more difficult to challenge gerrymandering that dilutes the Black vote. The new Ninth District now stretches across half the state and has a majority-white population, a significant shift from its previous configuration which covered mostly the Memphis area. Taylor, who has loaned his campaign $1.5 million, is considered favored to win the seat.
What the Right Is Saying
Taylor and his supporters frame their legislative efforts as necessary responses to high rates of violent crime in Memphis, which have only recently begun to fall. Taylor has focused his campaign on public safety, advocating for aggressive prosecution and incarceration as primary tools for community safety. He has worked to oust Steve Mulroy, the first Democrat elected as Shelby County district attorney in 25 years, and pushed through legislation allowing the state to review every decision made by Mulroy’s office.
Taylor’s campaign highlights his business background, having made millions after selling his funeral home businesses to a private equity firm. In a social media post from May, Taylor shared a photo with U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett, stating, "My friend Tim Burchett showing me the dadgum ropes." The Republican approach to the district’s challenges prioritizes state-level control over local governance to ensure consistent law enforcement standards.
What the Left Is Saying
Democratic critics and local officials argue that Taylor’s legislative record in the state senate directly conflicts with the priorities of the voters he now seeks to represent. In his role, Taylor supported half a dozen preemption laws that superseded the power of local politicians in Memphis and Shelby County. These laws included prohibiting judges from considering a defendant’s ability to pay when making bail decisions and voiding a Memphis City Council ban on police stops for minor traffic infractions.
Former Shelby County General Sessions Court Judge Bill Anderson, who retired in May 2025 after clashing with Taylor over bail reform, stated that Taylor is "very dangerous" for Shelby County and the Ninth District if elected. Anderson noted that Taylor’s policies could disproportionately harm Black men. The local Democratic perspective emphasizes rehabilitation and addressing root causes of crime, such as improving schools and economic opportunities, rather than Taylor’s emphasis on aggressive prosecution and incarceration.
What the Numbers Show
The Ninth District was the state’s sole majority-Black district for more than four decades before the 2026 redistricting. The new map has rendered the district majority-white. Taylor, 58, has served in the state senate for nearly four years. He has loaned his congressional campaign $1.5 million. His opponent, State Rep. Justin J. Pearson, a 31-year-old Black Democrat, has received support from national Democrats and has outraised Taylor in campaign donations.
Shelby County’s jail, which is described as already overcrowded, has seen more than 65 deaths since 2018. Pearson was one of two Democratic legislators expelled by the Republican supermajority after leading a protest calling for gun control following a 2023 school shooting. He first gained national attention for his role in stopping the construction of an oil pipeline in a Black Memphis neighborhood.
The Bottom Line
The race for Tennessee’s Ninth Congressional District represents a contest between two divergent approaches to public safety and local governance. Taylor’s candidacy brings a former proponent of state preemption laws into a district historically defined by Black political representation. Pearson, positioned as the candidate with deep family roots in southwest Memphis, campaigns on addressing economic and educational root causes of crime. The outcome will determine whether the district continues to reflect its historical demographic and political identity or shifts toward a representation style aligned with the Republican supermajority’s legislative agenda.