Tennessee's 9th District Primary

Voters in Tennessee's 9th Congressional District head to the polls Aug. 6 with both parties choosing nominees for a seat that has shifted dramatically on the political map. Five Democrats and four Republicans are competing in separate primaries, with the November general election winner taking over a district that raters now call solidly Republican territory, even though the current occupant is a Democrat.

Tennessee runs a traditional partisan primary: Democratic and Republican voters cast ballots in separate contests, and the top vote-getter in each wins the nomination outright. There is no top-two system, no ranked-choice component, and no runoff. Winners from each Aug. 6 primary advance to the general election on Nov. 3.

The district covers the western tip of Tennessee, centered on Memphis and its urban core. It is among the most heavily urban districts in the state. Despite that geography, all three major ratings organizations classify the seat as Solid Republican, a characterization that reflects how dramatically the district's boundaries have shifted.

Incumbent Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen announced in May 2026 that he would not seek reelection after Tennessee's Republican-controlled legislature redrew the district, splitting Memphis across three congressional districts. The newly drawn 9th District extends into suburban Nashville territory and voted for Donald Trump by 21 points in the most recent presidential election. Cohen has represented the Memphis-based seat since 2007. His departure leaves an open seat, with 15 active candidates across both primaries and the general election field, and 22 candidates in the race overall.

The Candidates

Democrats

Justin Pearson entered the race in October 2025 as the frontrunner in the Democratic field. The Memphis-based state representative gained national attention in 2023 as one of the "Tennessee Three": Democrats temporarily expelled from the state legislature after leading a gun-violence protest on the House floor following a deadly Nashville school shooting. He has raised more than $2.2 million, doing so without corporate PAC money, and has secured endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Justice Democrats, the Working Families Party, SEIU, and AFSCME.

London Lamar is a Memphis state senator and chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus. She is the youngest woman and youngest African American ever elected to the Tennessee State Senate. Lamar launched her congressional campaign in May 2026 and has positioned herself as a pragmatic Democratic voice, though she has faced a significant fundraising gap compared to Pearson.

Jim Torino is a nonprofit founder and former healthcare executive who has lived in Tennessee for nearly three decades. His campaign centers on affordable healthcare, housing, and protecting Medicare and Social Security.

Also on the Democratic ballot: M. LaTroy Alexandria-Williams, DeVante Hill, and Brenda Woods.

Republicans

Brent Taylor holds both the financial advantage and a roster of high-profile endorsements in the Republican field. The Memphis-area state senator, who represents Eads and parts of Shelby County, has the backing of President Donald Trump as well as U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty.

Todd Warner is an eighth-generation Tennessee farmer and state representative from Chapel Hill in rural Marshall County. He is running as an America First conservative.

Jeremy Thompson is a retired U.S. Army Sergeant First Class with more than 22 years of service in military intelligence and special operations support. He also serves as a volunteer firefighter, EMT, and reserve deputy.

Charlotte Bergmann is making her fifth run for this seat, having contested the 9th District four previous times as a Republican. Her platform centers on border security, Second Amendment rights, election integrity, and term limits.

Also on the Republican ballot: Kevin Young.

The Money Behind the Race

Outside groups have largely stayed out of this race. Total independent expenditures reached $1,234 through July 1, with no communication costs reported, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) data current as of Aug. 3.

The sole outside spender on record is Justice Democrats PAC, which accounts for all $1,234 in independent expenditures. Every dollar was spent in support of Pearson: no outside money has been reported opposing any candidate in either primary.

With outside spending negligible, the race has been contested primarily on candidate fundraising. Total raised across all candidates in the race stands at $5,869,556, according to FEC records. Pearson's $2.2 million haul represents the dominant share of that total and dwarfs what his Democratic rivals have reported.

Ratings vs. Odds

Cook Political Report, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and Inside Elections each rate the general election Solid Republican: Cook as of July 16, Inside Elections as of June 30, and Sabato as of July 30. The consensus rating, as calculated by 270toWin, sits at Likely Republican as of July 30. The gap between the three individual raters (all Solid Republican) and the consensus label (Likely Republican) reflects how the aggregation methodology weights the inputs, not a divergence in the underlying assessments.

All three organizations issued those ratings with a Democratic incumbent still technically holding the seat, a signal of how thoroughly redistricting altered the district's partisan composition.

Prediction markets track that outlook closely. On Kalshi, Republicans carry an 89% probability of winning the general election to Democrats' 11%, as of Aug. 3. No probability is assigned to other candidates. The market has recorded $7,508 in trading volume.

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