Voting in Tennessee can sometimes feel useless. The state will vote red, Memphis will vote blue and, without a drastic change, there seems little that one vote can do about it. But primary elections are not so predictable. This August, Justin Pearson and Steven Cohen will face off in a hotly contested Democratic primary for the United States (U.S.) House of Representatives seat in the ninth district of Tennessee, which includes most of Memphis.
Cohen, 76 years old, is the incumbent for this election, having served in the U.S. House since 2007. He is generally a more moderate Democrat. Pearson, on the other hand, is a 31 year old more liberal-leaning Democrat. He is most well known for being ousted, then quickly reinstated, from his position on the Tennessee House of Representatives for leading a protest calling for gun reform.
Education…