Tennessee state Rep. Gloria Johnson, the only Democratic member of the “Tennessee Three” to narrowly survive a Republican-led impeachment effort, has launched an exploratory committee as she considers a run for the seat held by US Sen. Marsha Blackburn in 2024.
Johnson, 61, filed exploratory paperwork — a step that usually comes before the official launch of a campaign — last week. Doing so allows him to begin raising money to support efforts such as travel and voting without officially becoming a candidate. It is not necessary to run for political office but it can help boost a candidate’s profile.
“Tennessee has a Senator who stands up to bullies, I have a reputation for standing up to bullies,” Johnson said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to this race and having great conversations with people who are hungry for better leadership in Washington.”
In ruby red Tennessee, Johnson is expected to face an uphill battle if he advances to face Blackburn. The state has not elected a Democrat to a statewide office since 2006.
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Johnson has long been a vocal critic of Blackburn and other top Tennessee Republican leaders during his tenure. However, it wasn’t until this spring that his political career received a national boost after he participated in a pro-gun control protest inside the Tennessee Capitol that drew thousands of protesters demanding that lawmakers address the loose which are state gun laws.
The demonstration came just days after a gunman opened fire at a private Christian school in Nashville, killing three children and three adults. Because of the intense tension, Johnson joined fellow Democratic Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones as they approached the front of the House floor without permission with a bullhorn, joined the chants and cries for action of the protesters in the public galleries and outside the chamber.
Sen. asked. Marsha Blackburn and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on President Joe Biden’s proposed budget request for fiscal year 2024, March 16, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
Republican lawmakers quickly called for their ouster because they violated protocol and disrupted House proceedings. Pearson and Jones, who are both Black, were ousted, while Johnson, who is white, was saved by one vote, though Republicans denied that race was a factor. Pearson and Johnson were reinstated on an interim basis and re-elected to their positions last week.
All three will join their legislative colleagues later this month for a special session to address possible changes to the state’s gun control laws. Republican lawmakers initially refused to do so before adjourning their regular session in April. Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who pushed for changes to keep guns away from people deemed a threat to harm themselves or others, is calling them back into session.
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Blackburn’s first Senate race took place in 2018, when he defeated Democratic former Gov. Phil Bredesen by nearly 11 percentage points.
Blackburn’s win, in which she also became Tennessee’s first female United States senator, marked a sharp shift to the right among the state’s Republican Party leaders. While former GOP senators from the Volunteer State are known for taking more centrist positions, Blackburn launched his senate campaign by saying he was a “hardcore, card-carrying Tennessee conservative” and would soon aligned himself with former President Donald Trump.
In 2021, he vowed to contest the electoral college results that confirmed President Joe Biden’s victory, but later backed down after watching the start of the January 6 insurrection from inside the US Capitol.
Along with Johnson, Democratic community activist and organizer Marquita Bradshaw has also announced plans to run for Blackburn’s seat. Bradshaw won the Democratic Senate nomination in 2020, but later lost to Republican US Sen. Bill Hagerty in the general election by 27 percentage points.
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“With the urging of liberals in Washington, Gloria Johnson has taken another critical step toward joining liberal Democrat Marquita Bradshaw in the Tennessee Senate Democratic Primary,” said Blackburn’s campaign spokeswoman, Abigail Sigler. “They are both radical socialists aligned with Joe Biden’s failed policies that are making Tennesseans’ lives harder every day.”
