Incumbent state House Rep. Mark White, who ran for a seventh term to represent Shelby County’s District 83, won re-election Tuesday, defeating his Democratic challenger, Jerri Green.

The 70-year-old Germantown Republican has held the House District 83 seat since 2010. The district includes East Memphis, Germantown and the Southwind-Windyke areas.

By 10 p.m. Tuesday with all 16 precincts reporting, White had 17,682 or 54% of the votes to Green’s 15,063 or 46% of the votes.

White, a former teacher, principal and small business owner, chairs the Tennessee House Education Committee. During his campaign, he stood on his record of education reform, including his support of Gov. Bill Lee’s 2019 education savings account legislation and his sponsorship of a charter schools authorizing commission. This commission would give the state more say over local school boards.

He also supports expanding access to health care, including Medicaid. He ran unopposed in the August Republican primary and faced Green, a Memphis attorney with Community Legal Center in Memphis, in an effort to retain his District 83 seat in Tuesday’s election.

Green, 42, a Memphis Democrat, was seeking to flip the district from red to blue for the first time in a decade.

During the campaign, Green’s platform included a push for Medicaid expansion for uninsured and underinsured residents.

A mother of three school-age children, Green also backed more funding for K-12 education, teacher pay raises and opposed to the school voucher program.

Green, who volunteers with Moms Demand Action, a group advocating for common-sense gun laws, advocates for universal background checks after losing her best friend, grandparents, and a colleague to gun violence. It is an issue that she said she cares “deeply about.”

When reached Tuesday, Green said she was proud of the race she ran and the work of her team. She said she called White around 9 p.m. and conceded the race. 

“I am grateful to all my family and friends and we’ve come closer than anyone ever has,” Green said.