Recount requests OK’d for 2 Shelby County races in Democratic primary
The Tennessee Democratic Party’s State Primary Board voted Saturday to approve the recount requests made by two Shelby County Commission primary candidates.
Althea Greene and Eric Winston asked for recounts after their narrow losses in Shelby County Commission Democratic primaries on May 3.
Greene lost to Henri Brooks in the District 7 race, while Winston lost to Miska Clay Bibbs in District 11.
In addition, Greene charged Brooks does not actually live in the district she would represent. This challenge failed and Brooks remains on the ballot.
The state Democratic Party formed an ad hoc committee that met June 8 to discuss and investigate the challenges.
The party’s board will make a formal request to the Shelby County Election Commission for the two recounts.
A third race from the Democratic primary, the juvenile court clerk race, also was challenged. Stephanie Gatewood, who came in third place, contested the win of Janeen Gordon, charging that Gordon misled the public by using her mother’s well-known name — Fullilove — on campaign materials and on the ballot. However, Gatewood did not notify all other candidates in the time allowed, according to the state Democratic Party board, and the challenge was not considered.
COUNTY COMMISSION, DISTRICT 7, DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY
Greene, who is currently a member of the Memphis-Shelby County School Board, charged that Brooks, the winner of the Democratic primary for Shelby County Commission District 7, does not actually live in her district.
According to state law, a county commissioner must reside within and be a qualified voter of the district represented.
Brooks said she has lived at her current address, a senior living facility located in District 7, for about three years. She provided the board with a lease, a copy of her personal checkbook and mail.
Greene alleged she had spoken to neighbors in the senior living facility who said Brooks did not live there and asked for time that was not granted to get a notarized statement from the neighbor to the board. Greene also pointed to the fact that Brooks has faced a residency controversy before.
In 2015, Brooks entered an Alford plea to a charge of putting a false address on a petition to running for juvenile court clerk. An Alford plea allows a defendant to acknowledge enough evidence to convict them, but they do not admit guilt. Originally sentenced to two years of probation and 80 hours of community service, the felony charge was dismissed and expunged in 2017.
The board ultimately voted to not remove Brooks from the ballot after hearing statements from both Greene’s and Brooks’ teams.
Greene came in second place in the primary to Brooks, with 1,531 votes to Brooks’ 1,607 votes, a margin of just 76 votes, and requested a recount. The recount was granted by the board.
Greene provided the $4,310 the Shelby County Commission estimates the District 7 recount will cost with the state party to cover the recount.
The Democratic nominee will face independent Shirelle-Dakota Brown in the general election in August.
COUNTY COMMISSION, DISTRICT 11, DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY
Winston, the senior pastor at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in South Memphis, asked for a recount in the Democratic primary for the Shelby County Commission seat representing District 11 after coming in second in the race by 18 votes, according to the TNDP board. He had 1,267 votes to Clay Bibbs’ 1,285 votes.
The TNDP primary board voted to recommend the recount.
Winston provided the $835 the Shelby County Commission estimates the District 11 recount will cost with the state party.
In late May, after initially asking for the recount, Winston said a recount doesn’t mean he’ll win the race, but it is something he feels he owes the citizens of the district and to the people who worked on his campaign.
The winner of the Democratic primary for District 11 takes the seat because are no other challengers on the general election ballot.