district 59

GOP chair denies endorsement in Davidson primary

Tennessee Republican Party Chair Scott Golden is stressing he has not endorsed either candidate running for the GOP nomination in the open House District 59 seat in Davidson County. The statement came after a mailer by Michelle Foreman included a laudatory quote by Golden on a mailer listing her endorsements.

“A recent mailer was sent out implying I endorsed a candidate for state House in your district,” Golden said, according to Facebook post by rival candidate Wyatt Rampy. “Let me set the record straight. That is inaccurate. As chairman, I have not, and will not endorse any Republican candidate in a contested primary.”

The new seat comprises several wealthy communities in southern Davidson County, including Belle Meade, Oak Hill, and Forest Hill. The General Assembly redrew the lines of retiring Democratic Rep. Jason Potts’ district earlier this year to try to make it more favorable to Republicans. Caleb Hemmer, a former aide to then-Gov. Phil Bredesen, is the lone Democrat running.

Foreman is a member of the state GOP’s executive committee. It’s not the first time her mailers have been problematic. A previous one urged people to scan a QR code to find their voting locations. But doing so led to the website of the election commission in neighboring Williamson County, which is outside the district. The primary is on Thrursday.

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