Nashville Metro Councilwoman Mina Johnson won't seek re-election

Mina Johnson

District 23 Metro Councilwoman Mina Johnson has announced she will not be seeking reelection. This is good news.  Like most Metro council members Mina Johnson is a liberal. She was one of the council members who voted for a tax increase last year. She also voted for the resolution which would continue the auto emissions testing program in Nashville even though the State says we may discontinue it. 

Mina Johnson is only serving her first term and is eligible for reelection.  It is difficult to unseat an incumbent and if Johnson sought reelection, she would likely  be reelected.  Most of the time, the only chance to replace a liberal council member with a less liberal member is when the incumbent is term-limited and not eligible to seek reelection. 

District 23 includes the city of Belle Meade. In the recent governor's election, Dean won the district by a vote of 2172 for Dean and 1672 for Bill Lee.  Considering former mayor Karl Dean had the hometown advantage, that is not a bad showing for Lee and indicates a Republican or someone who is perceived as less liberal could compete in this district. In the House District 56 race, two Council District 23 precincts were in House District 56. In those two precincts, Republican Brent Moody garnered 1,900 votes and Democrat Bob Freeman got 1,339 votes. A good Republican candidate could be competitive in this districts.  Council races are non-partisan, of course, and there are few issues which are obviously ideological.  However, in those few occasions on which there is an ideological divide it is important to have a council member who favors fiscal responsibility, government efficiency, holding the line on tax increases, and supports private property rights.  

The next election for Council is August 1, 2019.  The earliest one can pick up a qualifying petition is March 18, 2019.  That is not that far away.  A good candidate needs to step forward and seek this open seat.

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