New generation of poets find familiar in legacy of Tom Lee
The story of a man who rescued 32 people from the Mississippi River 100 years ago inspires three high school seniors who won the first Tom Lee Poetry and Spoken Word Contest.
Bill Dries
Reporter
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for almost 50 years covering a wide variety of stories from the 1977 death of Elvis Presley and the 1978 police and fire strikes to numerous political campaigns, every county mayor and every Memphis Mayor starting with Wyeth Chandler.
There are 4155 articles by Bill Dries :
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May 2022
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Spirit of Memphis -
Shelby County Commission delays decision on adjusted county property tax rate
The rate of $3.399 advanced Monday, May 9, on first reading with uncertainty ahead for the second of three votes on May 23.
Related stories:
Barretville General Store gets green light for expansion despite ‘family squabble'
County Commission debates filling open State House District 91 seat
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Shelby County County Commission takes up lower property tax rate dilemma
The commission, at its Monday, May 9, meeting, also decides whether to fill a vacant state House seat in the Shelby County delegation to the Tennessee General Assembly.
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Shelby County Harris proposes $1.6B county budget with lower tax rate
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris outlined his budget proposal the day after winning the Democratic primary for county mayor and advancing to the August county general election in his quest for a second term.
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Elections What Harris’ big win in the Democratic mayoral primary says about the general election campaign
The Daily Memphian’s On The Record podcast reviews the results from Tuesday’s county primaries with a look ahead to the August county general election.
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Elections Three Democratic clerks fall to rival Democrats in Tuesday primaries
Only one of the incumbent Democratic clerks from 2018’s Democratic sweep of the offices was without a challenge from within the party. Three of the incumbents didn’t survive to advance to the August county general election.
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Shelby County Gilliom leaves as county CAO for Allworld position
Dwan Gilliom referred to the new position with Allworld as the end of his career in public service.
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Update
ElectionsMay county primaries draw turnout of almost 11% in setting the stage for August county general election
Election for mayor narrows to a race between the incumbent and a Memphis City Council member.
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Elections Harris wins mayoral primary handily, faces Morgan in August
Incumbent Democratic County Mayor Lee Harris defeated challenger Ken Moody. Harris said he expects a hard-fought contest in the general election contest with Republican nominee Worth Morgan.
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Update
State GovernmentReaction divided to leaked Supreme Court opinion on abortion
City and state representatives in Washington react to the leaked draft of a high court opinion that indicates it is about to overturn the landmark ruling that legalized abortion in the U.S.
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Elections County primary election day offers more decisions for Democrats than Republicans
For Republicans, there is only one contested race to be decided out of 23 on the primary ballot — the District 4 County Commission primary between incumbent Brandon Morrison and challenger Jordan Carpenter.
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Elections Political Roundup: End of early voting, the Toney challenge, Moody’s support
The Political Roundup has the details for last-minute early voting as well as a follow-up on Brandon Toney’s bid to get back on the August Republican primary ballot in state Senate District 31.
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Shelby County Death ends Joe Cooper’s long, futile road back to elected office
The former County Commissioner died in January, his family disclosed this month. He is buried in a county cemetery, 50 years after his only win in a storied political career that saw him go to prison twice.
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April 2022
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Behind The Headlines TVA’s CEO says MLGW decision is about ‘risk’
TVA CEO Jeff Lyash talked on “Behind the Headlines” about the federal agency’s offer to MLGW if the utility stays with TVA for another two decades and local power generation by the utility.
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Shelby County Trump’s last chief of staff touts ex-president’s record to local Republicans
Former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows gave the keynote speech at the local Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Gala, with many GOP figures vowing to regain the majority in the U.S. House in midterm elections this year.
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Premium
City of MemphisGhana’s honored status at MIM fest draws criticism from LGBTQ groups
This is not the first time Memphis in May has chosen to honor a country with a questionable record on human rights.
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City of Memphis City Council Scorecard: Term limits, city primaries, Southwind, more
This City Council Scorecard tracks first votes on a three-term limit for the council and partisan city elections, along with a Southwind apartment complex that stirred some de-annexation resentment.
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Elections Two Republican primaries are already throwing sparks
The only two contested Republican primaries in August for seats in the Tennessee General Assembly representing parts of Shelby County could change dramatically with new challenges that could remove one of the contenders from each of the two-man races.
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Elections Early voting expected to increase in final four days
Almost 16,000 Shelby Countians had voted early through Saturday. Early voting ends Thursday and the final four days of the two-week voting period usually record the heaviest turnout judging by past elections in the same cycle.
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Elections The election backstory: Term limits
Here are the basics of how term limits work in Memphis and Shelby County, and a tumultuous history of the issue across both governments.
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Elections The election backstory: Primaries
Here is the backstory of how county primaries came to be in the early 1990s, called for by Republicans several years after Democrats splintered over a move in their ranks to take local elections partisan.
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Elections Changing who wins and how long they serve: A call for city primaries and extending term limits
Making its way through the Memphis City Council are a pair of ballot questions that could change the face of city government and the nature of city politics — if they get on the ballot and if a majority of city voters agree at the ballot box.
Related coverage:
The election backstory: Term limits
The election backstory: Primaries -
Elections People’s Convention selects endorsements for Democratic primary
After hearing candidates speak, the 100 people in attendance at the National Civil Rights Museum used their cell phones to vote for those they wanted the convention to recommend in Shelby County.
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Behind The Headlines MLGW CEO: First look at TVA alternatives due in May or June
MLGW President and CEO J.T. Young says on Behind The Headlines that a preliminary report on sealed bids to replace TVA as the utility’s electric power supplier should be ready in late May or early June for review.
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City of Memphis Riverfront tree planting begins on Earth Day
The trees planted along the riverbluff are the first installment of 1,000 trees pledged by Valero refinery and planted by volunteers from Valero.
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