Tennessee's 8th congressional district | |
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Representative | |
Distribution |
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Population (2023) | 773,599 [2] |
Median household income | $65,691 [3] |
Ethnicity |
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Cook PVI | R+21 [4] |
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 rest of the district is composed mostly of small towns and farming communities. The district already had a strong social conservative tint which grew even more pronounced when eastern Memphis was added to the district; many of the state's most politically active churches are located here.
According to the 2010 census, the five largest cities located mostly with the district are: Jackson (65,211), Bartlett (54,613), Collierville (43,965), Germantown (38,844), and Dyersburg (17,145). Of these, only Jackson and Dyersburg are not in Shelby County
The district is located in West Tennessee. It borders Kentucky to the north, Arkansas and Missouri to the west, and Mississippi to the south.
It is currently composed of the following counties: Carroll, Chester, Crockett, Dyer, Fayette, Gibson, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Henry, Lake, Lauderdale, Madison, McNairy, Obion, Tipton, and Weakley. It also contains a large piece of Shelby County, including the eastern part of Memphis, half of Tipton County, and a small piece of Benton.
Results under old lines (2013–2023)
Year | Office | Result |
---|---|---|
2000 | President | Al Gore 51% - George W. Bush 48% |
2004 | President | George W. Bush 53% - John Kerry 47% |
2008 | President | John McCain 64% - Barack Obama 35% |
2012 | President | Mitt Romney 66% - Barack Obama 33% |
2016 | President | Donald J. Trump 66% - Hillary Clinton 30% |
2020 | President | Donald J. Trump 65% - Joe Biden 33% |
Districts similar to today's 8th (composing of rural areas in West Tennessee) have been in place since Reconstruction.
During the early 20th century, most of northwest Tennessee was represented by Democrats Finis J. Garrett (1905 to 1929) and Jere Cooper (1929 to 1957). Before 1933, the district was numbered as the 9th; it was numbered as the 9th again from 1943 to 1953. Cooper was succeeded by Fats Everett, who served until his death in early 1969.
The district was pushed into Memphis' northern suburbs in 1967 due to a re-districting caused by the Baker v. Carr ruling. Following Everett's death in 1969, former Tennessee Commissioner of Agriculture Ed Jones won a special election for the balance of his term. Jones served the area in Congress for just under twenty years until his retirement in 1989. Upon Jones' retirement, State Senator John S. Tanner succeeded him. Following eleven terms (22 years) in Congress, Tanner retired.
For most of the 20th century, the 8th was a classic Yellow Dog Democrat district. The area's Democrats were nowhere near as liberal as their counterparts in Nashville and Memphis, and the area's voters were willing to split their tickets in national elections from the 1960s onward. However, apart from the historically Unionist Highland Rim counties of Carroll, Henderson, McNairy, Hardin and Wayne, [5] the GOP was almost nonexistent at the state and local level, with Republicans only fielding "sacrificial lamb" candidates on the few times they fielded candidates at all.
However, Republicans gradually began eroding the Democratic advantage at the turn of the century. It was swept up in the statewide Republican wave of 2008, with Republicans capturing most of the district's seats in the Tennessee General Assembly. This culminated in 2011, when Republican businessman Stephen Fincher defeated Democratic state senator Roy Herron in a landslide, taking 58 percent of the vote to Herron's 39 percent. It marked the first time since Reconstruction that a Republican had represented northwest Tennessee. Since then, no Democrat has managed even 40 percent of the vote.
Following the 2010 census, the district lost its remaining territory in Middle Tennessee, meaning it was entirely within West Tennessee for the first time since 1968. In the same census, it picked up the 7th's share of Shelby County, meaning that since 2012, any area of Shelby County that is not in the 9th is in the 8th. The 8th also absorbed all of Fayette County. The eastern Memphis suburbs, particularly eastern Shelby County, are the most Republican areas of the state outside of East Tennessee. Their addition gave the 8th a character similar to the 7th; it is now one of the most Republican districts in the South.
In 2016, Fincher retired and was succeeded by Republican David Kustoff, a Germantown resident and former United States Attorney.
Shelby County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 929,744. It is the largest of the state's 95 counties, both in terms of population and geographic area. Its county seat is Memphis, a port on the Mississippi River and the second most populous city in Tennessee. The county was named for Governor Isaac Shelby (1750–1826) of Kentucky. It is one of only two remaining counties in Tennessee with a majority African American population, along with Haywood County. Shelby County is part of the Memphis, TN–MS–AR Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is bordered on the west by the Mississippi River. Located within the Mississippi Delta, the county was developed as a center of cotton plantations in the antebellum era, and cotton continued as an important commodity crop well into the 20th century. The economy has become more diversified.
West Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee that roughly comprises the western quarter of the state. The region includes 21 counties between the Tennessee and Mississippi rivers, delineated by state law. Its geography consists primarily of flat lands with rich soil and vast floodplain areas of the Mississippi River. Of the three regions, West Tennessee is the most sharply defined geographically, and is the lowest-lying. It is both the least populous and smallest, in land area, of the three Grand Divisions. Its largest city is Memphis, the state's second most populous city.
Dan Heflin Kuykendall was an American politician and businessman who served as a United States Representative from Tennessee's 8th and 9th congressional districts from 1967 until 1975. A member of the Republican Party, Kuykendall was the first Republican to be elected in the 8th district since 1920 and was the first to be elected in the 9th district since 1872.
Tennessee's 9th congressional district is a congressional district in West Tennessee. It has been represented by Democrat Steve Cohen since 2007.
Area code 901 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for Memphis, Tennessee, and most of its inner-ring suburbs. It is the smallest numbering plan area in the state.
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).
Memphis, Tennessee is governed by a mayor and thirteen city council members. Since 1995, as a result of a legal challenge, all council members are elected from nine geographic districts. Seven are single-member districts and two have three representatives each.
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.
Stephen Lee Fincher is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for Tennessee's 8th congressional district from 2011 to 2017. He is a member of the Republican Party. The seat was vacated by retiring Democratic incumbent John Tanner in 2010, and Fincher defeated Democratic Tennessee state senator Roy Herron in the 2010 mid-term Congressional election. Fincher was reelected in 2012 and 2014. On February 1, 2016, he announced that he would not be running for a fourth term. On October 22, 2017, Fincher announced his candidacy for the U.S Senate seat held by outgoing Senator Bob Corker. Fincher withdrew his candidacy in February 2018, instead urging Corker to seek reelection.
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 1996 United States presidential election in Tennessee took place on November 5, 1996. All 50 states and the District of Columbia, were part of the 1996 United States presidential election. Tennessee voters chose 11 electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president. Tennessee was won by incumbent United States President Bill Clinton of Arkansas, who was running against Kansas Senator Bob Dole. Clinton ran a second time with former Tennessee Senator Al Gore as vice president, and Dole ran with former New York Congressman Jack Kemp.
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.
David Frank Kustoff is an American politician and attorney serving as the United States representative from Tennessee's 8th congressional district. The district includes the bulk of West Tennessee, but most of its population is in the eastern part of the Memphis area, including the eastern fourth of Memphis itself. From 2006 to 2008, Kustoff served as a United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee. He is one of two Jewish Republicans in Congress, alongside Max Miller.
The 1948 United States presidential election in Tennessee took place on November 2, 1948, as part of the 1948 United States presidential election. Tennessee voters chose 12 representatives, or electors, to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
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.
Tennessee's 31st Senate district is one of 33 districts in the Tennessee Senate. It has been represented by Republican Brent Taylor since 2022. During redistricting in 2022, it was drawn in a more Republican friendly part of Shelby County.
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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.