A review of the 16 Memphis mayoral elections under the mayor-council form of city government before and after the city runoff provision was abolished.

Next year’s mayoral race will have historical implications, and there’s been quite a bit of maneuvering to get city charter amendments on the Nov. 8 ballot this year.

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What the past 16 Memphis mayoral elections tell us about the next one

The group discussed “best practices” including implementing blended sentencing, restorative justice programs and rehabilitative programs. 

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TBI investigating death at 201 Poplar

On Monday, Oct. 3, nine Bartlett alderman candidates took advantage of the chance to tell voters why they should choose them in the three separate races on the Nov. 8 elections.

The new voting system makes its countywide debut Oct. 19 with the start of early voting in Shelby County, ahead of the Nov. 8 election day.

The Shelby County District Attorney’s office has announced three new hires, Gerald Skahan, Haden Lawyer and Nicole Harris who begin Monday, Oct. 17. 

Many of the proposed bills would increase penalties for rape, kidnapping and other violent crimes and require the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to test rape kits faster.

The Tennessee constitution states “that slavery and involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, are forever prohibited in this state.” The third constitutional question on the Nov. 8 ballot proposes deleting the exception.

Jonathan Dunn began his term on the Arlington Community Schools Board of Education as the body addressed third-grade retention based on TCAP scores.

The set of a dozen appropriation resolutions topped a relatively uneventful council agenda Tuesday, Sept. 27.

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Memphis City Council to consider resolution enforcing curfew for juveniles

The resolution also requests MPD work with the city administration on a proposal to open one or more overnight curfew centers. 

Any offer won’t be official until the Collierville Board of Mayor and Aldermen appoints her in a meeting. 

The 10 reappointments were voted on individually Monday. There was only one no vote against any of the nominees.

Employment and labor attorney Alan Crone, a former Memphis City Council member, says the claim of “whistleblower” status by County Clerk Wanda Halbert is “nonsense” and likened it to an episode of “The Office.”

The ongoing discussion and debate were also present Wednesday, Sept. 21, as commissioners interviewed 30 attorneys who have applied to fill three vacant positions for judicial commissioners.

The voter registration deadline for the Nov. 8 ballot gives a sense of urgency to the latest canvassing forays into the city to increase not only voter registration but voter turnout. 

The MSCS board chairwoman, who in August won a second four-year term, referred to the board’s $480,000 severance package for superintendent Joris Ray as a “challenge” in which the school board showed leadership.

Brent Hammonds, David Parsons and Kevin Quinn discussed their qualifications and what they see as the priorities for the suburb improving. The fourth candidate — John Lackey — did not participate.

Between the Sept. 14 deadline to file qualifying petitions with the Shelby County Election Commission and this past Sunday’s deadline for candidates to withdraw the field stayed the same in the last judicial race of this election year.

The Commission Scorecard tracks votes on an attempt to change who investigates ethics complaints and selection of a new chairman and chairman pro tempore at the first meeting of the term.

Michelle McKissack is currently chairwoman of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools board and is looking at a potential run for Memphis mayor.

The Libertarian nominee for governor is a Black Memphian who says the party, which was overtaken this year by a caucus that is friendly with white nationalists and opposed to transgender people, has “broken (his) spirit.”

During a campaign stop Thursday, Sept. 15, in Memphis, Dr. Jason Martin pointed to low funding levels for the TBI crime lab despite a state surplus of $2 billion