Tami Sawyer takes oath as General Sessions Court clerk
The former county commissioner and a set of 15 appointed staff members formally take office Sept. 1 in the office that administers the day-to-day business of the largest court in the state.
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The former county commissioner and a set of 15 appointed staff members formally take office Sept. 1 in the office that administers the day-to-day business of the largest court in the state.
Lisa Arnold and Tami Sawyer are the candidates in the only countywide race on the Aug. 1 ballot. The election will mean a change in the administrator and records keeper for the state’s largest court system. Lisa Arnold, Tami Sawyer on their plans if elected General Sessions Court clerk Lisa Arnold, Tami Sawyer on their qualifications for General Sessions Court clerkRelated stories:
Here is what the two contenders for General Sessions Court clerk told The Daily Memphian about their qualifications to be the next clerk of the largest court system in the state.
Here is what the two contenders for General Sessions Court clerk told The Daily Memphian about what they each would do if they win the Aug. 1 election.
Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer won a hard-fought partisan contest for General Sessions Court Clerk in the only countywide race on the Thursday, Aug. 1, ballot.
Clerk-elect Tami Sawyer said her opponent’s campaign focus on Sawyer’s activist roots was ignored by voters. “I talked about my priorities. The other party talked about me,” she told The Daily Memphian.
The incumbent’s attendance record and the backlog of criminal court cases are issues in the race in the four-way Democratic primary for General Sessions court clerk. The winner of the Republican primary was decided at the filing deadline last year.
With an ability to cross racial lines, the outgoing Memphis mayor was a boss who knew how to delegate and trust experts but did not abdicate responsibility for making decisions.
The clerk’s office is the only countwide office on the March 5 primary ballot and with Sawyer’s entry the Democratic primary has three candidates. The filing deadline for the Democratic and Republican primaries is Dec. 14.
Republican-controlled county commissions in other parts of Tennessee have moved fast when state legislative seats open up, appointing replacements in less than a month.
County Commission Chair Willie Brooks denied that the meeting was called to try to hide the 8-0 vote on emergency funding for the project.
The MATA funding has also become an issue in the May Republican primary for commission District 4.
The $13 million in additional funding found from a group of seven county budget line items brings the total cost of the project to around $30 million including the $3 million the county paid for the Old Getwell building that is being renovated.
The funding would provide for notices to Shelby County voters about changes to precincts and polling places. Renovation costs for juvenile detention center more than doubleRelated story:
The commission delayed votes to receive and file two financial reports from Memphis Shelby County Schools until it gets dollar figures on the rebrand.Related story:
The commission won’t fill the vacancy until next month but most if not all of the names on the list are expected to be those running in the August primaries for a full four-year term in Nashville.
Meanwhile, Jason Martin slams Gov. Bill Lee’s state of the state address and calls for the legalization of pot in all forms. And a look at the May and August ballots ahead of Thursday’s deadline to get on the May county primary ballot.
The commission debated Monday whether it should fill the District 33 seat Robinson was expelled from last week by fellow Senators. Part of the argument is whether it amounts to an endorsement of the Senate action.
The County Commission Scorecard finds basic ideological differences remain on the 13-member body, as it moves into the home stretch of its four-year term.
Commissioner Brandon Morrison wants the county commission to rehire the lobbying firm it has used in the past and called for a “compromise to purple.” Commissioner Tami Sawyer said the call for bipartisanship “makes absolutely no sense at all.”
The commission’s Democratic majority approved a $25,000 grant to fund a playground at the center in Midtown. People on both sides of the abortion issue had a lot to say before the vote.
Three county commissioners voted against the $1.44 million purchase of 180,000 tests in 90 kits with two tests a piece. One cited comments by Dr. Ben Carson on Fox News earlier this week complaining that more tests would mean a rise in COVID cases.
The County Commission Scorecard looks at the second- reading vote on pay raises for some of the county’s top elected officials and the political perils of raising your own pay while preparing to run for re-election.
The 21% raises garnered only two yes votes and two no votes in the first of three readings with seven county commissioners abstaining. The final vote is set for Dec. 20 and will take nine votes to be approved.
The redistricting map approved Monday keeps a new Cordova-based district, restores the Collierville 7 precinct to District 2 and Germantown 4 to District 4. It also separates two incumbents expected to run again.