Tennessee Governor Signs GOP Gerrymander Dismantling Sole Majority-Black Congressional District, Dividing Memphis Three Ways

Governor Bill Lee signed a new congressional map into law on May 7, 2026, dismantling Tennessee’s sole majority-Black congressional district — the Memphis-based 9th District held by longtime Rep. Steve Cohen — by carving Shelby County (64% Black) into three separate majority-white, Republican-controlled districts. The map, passed in a special legislative session called by Lee at Trump’s personal request, is designed to produce a 9-0 Republican congressional delegation from Tennessee ahead of the 2026 midterms. The legislation passed days after the Supreme Court’s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais gave Republicans political cover for mid-decade gerrymandering, and The Intercept documented that it revives racial dilution tactics last widely used in the Jim Crow era.

This is the most aggressive mid-decade racial gerrymander attempted since Rucho v. Common Cause (2019) foreclosed federal court review of partisan gerrymandering. Tennessee joins a coordinated national pattern: Trump personally requested Republican-controlled states undertake unusual mid-cycle redistricting to maximize GOP House seats before 2026, and Florida has simultaneously enacted a parallel map. The two states’ maps together are projected to shift five additional House seats to Republicans. Lawsuits are expected from civil rights organizations under the remaining provisions of the Voting Rights Act. The Intercept calls the map “a revival of Jim Crow dilution strategy.”