Nashville Says They Will Vote To Re-Appoint Expelled Rep. Justin Jones — And Dems Have Votes To Reinstate Both
A majority of the Nashville Council says they will vote to reinstate expelled Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones, and Democrats in Memphis have more than enough votes to reinstate the other expelled Democrat, Rep. Justin Pearson.
On Thursday, the Tennessee House voted to expel Reps. Jones and Pearson over a protest calling for gun reform in the wake of the shooting at Nashville’s Covenant School that killed 6 people. The legislature spared Gloria Johnson, a 60-year-old white woman who participated in the protest. That disparity has been flagged by the Tennessee Three and others as a racist double standard.
While the expulsions have brought a tsunami of attention to their cause, the two lawmakers may not be absent from the chamber for long. On Friday, NBC News reported that the majority of members in the Nashville Metropolitan Council say they’ll vote to send Jones back:
Twenty-three members of the 40-seat Metropolitan Council confirmed to NBC News or on social media that they plan to vote to reinstate Jones to the Legislature.
The council, which currently has 39 members, will hold a special meeting Monday to discuss an interim replacement for Jones’ seat. Vice Mayor Jim Shulman said he expects the council will take action to suspend the rules at the meeting to vote on a successor to fill Jones’ seat instead of holding a monthlong nomination period.
In interviews with NBC News, members expressed outrage at Jones’ expulsion and said hundreds of constituents have reached out to demand that he be reinstated.
Former Rep. Pearson could also be back in the chamber soon, as Democrats hold a super-majority on the Shelby County Council. As of Thursday, the council said it will consider Pearson’s reinstatement, provided there’s no legal reason preventing such an action. County assistant attorney Marcy Ingram told local news site The Commercial Appeal that she saw no legal difficulty in reinstating Pearson.
