The 4th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in southern Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican Scott DesJarlais since January 2011.
Most of the district is rural, but many residents live in the suburbs of Chattanooga and Nashville. The area is very hilly, and has many well-known geographical features related to its location on the Cumberland Plateau.
This part of Tennessee has several well-recognized distilleries such as Duck River, George Dickel, Southern Pride, and most famously the Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg.[3]
Throughout the 20th century, the 4th district took many different forms, but in most cases encompassed most of the rural area between Nashville and Knoxville. It has often been the state's largest district in terms of area, and one of the largest east of the Mississippi River, because of low population density and the district's rural character.
For almost thirty years (1947–1977), this area of Tennessee was represented in Congress by Joe L. Evins. (Early in his political career, his district was numbered as the "5th", but that district was almost entirely in what became the 4th after the round of redistricting following the 1950 census.)[4] Evins' successor in Congress was future vice president Al Gore Jr., who represented the 4th from 1977 to 1983. The district's current configuration dates from the 1980 census, when Tennessee gained a new congressional seat. Parts of what were previously in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th districts were combined to form a new 4th district. Most of Gore's territory became the 6th district.
The new district incorporated pieces of heavily RepublicanEast Tennessee and traditionally DemocraticMiddle Tennessee. It was so large that it stretched across five of Tennessee's eight television markets (Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, the Tri-Cities, as well as the Tennessee share of the Huntsville, Alabama, market).[5] and five of the state's nine radio markets (the above-mentioned cities, plus Cookeville). This gave congressional races much of the feel of statewide races; candidates' advertising budgets sometimes rivaled those for governor and U.S. Senate. Open-seat races in this district were usually among the most-watched in the country. However, the district's large size and lack of unifying influences make it very difficult to unseat an incumbent. Consequently, the district's congressman was usually reckoned as a statewide figure, with a good chance for winning state office in the future.
In 1982, Democrat Jim Cooper, son of former governor Prentice Cooper, defeated Cissy Baker, daughter of Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker. Cooper went on to represent the district until 1995.[6] On paper, this district was not safe for either party, given its volatile demographics. Much of the eastern portion, for instance, had not been represented by a Democrat since before the Civil War. However, Cooper was reelected five times without serious difficulty.
Cooper gave up his seat to run for the U.S. Senate in 1994, but lost to Fred Thompson. Republican Van Hilleary won the seat as part of the massive Republican wave of that year. Hilleary was reelected three times without much difficulty, handily winning a second term even as Bill Clinton carried the district due to Gore's presence as his running mate; Gore represented much of the western portion of the district for his first three terms in the House.
In 2002, Hilleary retired to mount an ultimately unsuccessful bid to become Governor of Tennessee, and was replaced by Democratic state senator Lincoln Davis. Davis held the seat for eight years. In 2010, Davis was challenged by Republican doctor Scott DesJarlais from South Pittsburg, who rode to victory on the Tea Party wave of 2010 despite Davis raising more money.[7] This marked the first time that an incumbent had been defeated in the district since the reformation of the district in 1982. Indeed, DesJarlais became the first challenger to defeat an incumbent Tennessee congressman in a general election since 1974. Following the 2010 census, the 4th was made slightly more compact. The district lost its northern portion, including its territory near the Tri-Cities and Knoxville. On the other hand, it gained all of Rutherford County, home of Murfreesboro, and northern Bradley County.
Albert Arnold Gore Sr. was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Tennessee from 1953 to 1971. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a U.S. Representative from the state's 4th congressional district from 1939 to 1953. He was the father of Al Gore, who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 until 2001, and held Tennessee's other U.S. Senate seat from 1985 to 1993. A native of Granville, Tennessee, Gore graduated from Middle Tennessee State Teachers College and taught school. From 1932 to 1936 he was superintendent of schools for Smith County. He attended the Nashville Y.M.C.A. Night Law School, now the Nashville School of Law, from which he graduated in 1936.
Lincoln Edward Davis is an American politician and the former U.S. Representative for Tennessee's 4th congressional district. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of Issue One.
James Hayes Shofner Cooper is an American lawyer, businessman, professor, and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Tennessee's 5th congressional district from 2003 to 2023. He is a Southern Democrat and was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, and represented Tennessee's 4th congressional district from 1983 to 1995. His district included all of Nashville. He chaired the United States House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the House Armed Services Committee, and sat on the Committee on Oversight and Reform, United States House Committee on the Budget, and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, more committees than any other member of Congress. At the end of his tenure, he was also the dean of Tennessee's congressional delegation. Cooper is the third-longest serving member of Congress ever from Tennessee, after Jimmy Quillen and B. Carroll Reece.
William Vanderpool "Van" Hilleary is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Tennessee's 4th congressional district from 1995 to 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party.
The 5th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in Middle Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican Andy Ogles since January 2023.
The 6th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in Middle Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican John Rose since January 2019.
The 2nd congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in East Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican Tim Burchett since January 2019. Although the district has taken many forms over the years, it has been centered on Knoxville since 1853. During the American Civil War era, the area was represented in Congress by Horace Maynard. Maynard switched parties many times but was pro-U.S. and did not resign from Congress when Tennessee seceded. Maynard entered Congress in 1857 but did not leave entirely until 1875.
The 7th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district located in parts of Middle and West Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican Mark Green since January 2019. The seventh district has significant urban, suburban, and rural areas. Although most of the area is rural, more than half of the district's votes are cast in either Davidson County (Nashville), Montgomery County (Clarksville), or Williamson County (Franklin).
The 8th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in West Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican David Kustoff since January 2017. The district appears rural on a map, but the bulk of its vote is cast in the suburban and exurban areas around Memphis, such as Germantown, Bartlett, and Collierville, as well as Fayette and Tipton counties. This area boasts some of the highest median incomes in the state.
The 2006 congressional elections in Tennessee was held on November 7, 2006, to determine who will represent the state of Tennessee in the United States House of Representatives.
The 2008 congressional elections in Tennessee was held on November 4, 2008, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts.
The 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee was held on November 2, 2010, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts.
Scott Eugene DesJarlais is an American politician and physician serving as the U.S. representative for Tennessee's 4th congressional district since 2011. The district stretches across East and Middle Tennessee. He is a member of the Republican Party.
The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee was held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate. Primary elections were held on August 2, 2012.
The 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee was held on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a gubernatorial election and an election to the U.S. Senate.
The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee was held on November 8, 2016, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including President of the United States. The primaries were held on August 4.
The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee was held on November 6, 2018, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including the gubernatorial election.
The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections.
The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections.
The 2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the State of Tennessee, one from each of the state's congressional districts. The elections will coincide with the 2024 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections. Primary elections took place on August 1, 2024.
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