Murfreesboro Democrat Bart Gordon is retiring after 25 years in office. Now, the race for his seat is a competition to see just how far the sixth district has swung to the right.
The district covers Murfreesboro, Cookeville and Gallatin, an area that was firmly Democratic for decades. But in elections for other offices, voters there increasingly vote Republican.
National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Andy Sere contends Gordon hung on to the seat as long as he did because he was an incumbent. He says other Democrats won’t have that advantage.
“Unless you already have a brand unto yourself apart from the national Democrat brand, you know, in this political environment, in this part of the state, you’re just not going to have a very good shot.”
But State Democratic Party Chair Chip Forrester says there are potential candidates with just that sort of name recognition.
“People have expressed an interest that when the congressman retires, they would have an interest in stepping up. So we certainly know names out there, and some of them are, quite frankly, very attractive candidates.”
Forrester won’t give specific names, but says the list includes both business leaders and people who’ve held office.
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