Analysis: ‘The most political lawsuit I’ve ever seen’ — Inside the fight over the city charter
Memphis City Council members JB Smiley and Martavius Jones listen to arguments in Chancery Court judge JoeDae Jenkins' courtroom May 10, 2023. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)
Samuel Hardiman
Samuel Hardiman is an enterprise and investigative reporter who focuses on local government and politics. He began his journalism career at the Tulsa World in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he covered business and, later, K-12 education. Hardiman came to Memphis in 2018 to join the Memphis Business Journal, covering government and economic development. He then served as the Memphis Commercial Appeal’s city hall reporter and later joined The Daily Memphian in 2023. His current work focuses on Elon Musk’s xAI, regional energy needs and how Memphis and Shelby County government spend taxpayer dollars.
The lawsuit over residency for Memphis mayoral candidates has broad ramifications.
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