Tennessee Gov. Lee calls special session to break up Rep. Steve Cohen majority-Black Memphis district

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announces a special legislative session on May 1, 2026, beginning May 6, following a phone call with President Trump and the Callais ruling. The session targets the state's 9th Congressional District, a majority-Black seat based in Memphis held by 10-term Democrat Steve Cohen — Tennessee's only remaining Democratic House member. Republicans hold a supermajority in both chambers. The proposed map would split Memphis and its majority-Black population across three separate Republican-leaning districts. The redistricting legislation also repeals a 2010 state law prohibiting mid-decade redistricting. Candidate filing for Tennessee's August primary closed in March, meaning any new map would require new candidate filing periods.