Republican lawmakers and Tennessee's governor signed off Thursday on cutting Democratic-leaning Nashville's metro council in half, a move that follows the council's rejection of efforts to host the 2024 Republican National Convention in Music City.
Republican lawmakers and Tennessee's governor signed off Thursday on cutting Democratic-leaning Nashville's metro council in half, a move that follows the council's rejection of efforts to host the 2024 Republican National Convention in Music City.
"This attack on the Constitutional rights of Metro and the people who live here is very dangerous. It serves the interests of no one," said Wally Dietz, Nashville's law director. "Conventional wisdom for the past four decades has been that smaller group sizes tend to make better decisions and this is the largest council that we see," said Republican Sen. Adam Lowe of Calhoun."...There's a reason why we're judged by 12 of our peers in a jury and there's a reason, I think, why Christ walked with 12 of his disciples."
Nashville has operated as a combined city-county government under a 40-member council since 1963, when leaders were wrestling with consolidating the city with the surrounding county, and others were working to ensure Black leaders maintain a strong representation in the Southern city. Republican lawmakers overwhelmingly voted for the proposal. But on Thursday, GOP Sen. Frank Niceley warned that a smaller council could result in fewer Republicans getting elected in Nashville because of larger districts, thereby strengthening the Democratic political hold inside the city and developing"more powerful Democrats" to run for offices.
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