Environmental activist Pearson wins race to succeed the late Rep. Barbara Cooper

Environmental activist Justin Pearson won the Democratic primary to succeed the late Rep. Barbara Cooper (D-Memphis) in the Tennessee House. There were no Republicans or independents running for the District 86 seat.

The Shelby County Commission was expected to meet Wednesday to vote on whether to name Pearson to the House seat on an interim basis until the March general election.

Pearson won more than half of the 2,359 votes cast in the contest. His closest rival was former longtime County Commissioner Julian T. Bolton, who had been endorsed by former U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Sr. (D-Memphis). Pearson had the backing of current Democratic U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen and Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland.

Here are the unofficial results from Shelby County:

• Justin J. Pearson: 52%
• Julian T. Bolton: 12%
• Will Richardson: 8%
• Juliette Eskridge: 7%
• Clifford Lewis: 5%
• Tanya L. Cooper: 5%
• Rod Blount: 4%
• Dominique Frost: 4%
• Andrew “Rome” Withers: 1.5%
• Rebecca Robinson: 0.5%