As voters headed to the polls on the first day of early voting, several took to social media to voice their surprise at an unusual sight: Lines of voters spotted in multiple locations.
Shelby County historically has poor voter turnout. It’s 56th in Tennessee, which ranks 47th in the nation for voter turnout.
But on Oct. 14, 11,000 people cast ballots in Shelby County, compared to fewer than 6,300 on the first day of early voting in 2022. By Monday, 125,313 Shelby Countians had cast ballots during early voting, compared to 78,027 during the same period in 2022. That’s a 60.6% increase from the 2022 election, but lower than the same time period in 2018 by nearly 8%.
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Voting advocates and everyday voters say anger over the redistricting effort that cracked Memphis’ majority-Black congressional district into three parts is helping to bring Shelby County voters — including nonvoters and infrequent voters — to the polls in droves.
Across the city, groups are taking party buses to the polls, throwing 90s-themed Ballot Proms and hosting “spooky night(s) of voter reminder postcards, costumes (and) cocktails.” There have been learning sessions about constitutional amendments and exhibits about the right to vote.
An increase in voter turnout is critical to State Rep. Justin J. Pearson’s campaign against State Sen. Brent Taylor in what is now a predominantly white and Republican district, said Pearson’s campaign manager, Asha Ransby-Sporn.
The campaign needs nonvoters to participate in order to win the race, she said, but “would get pretty far” if occasional voters turned out in force.
The team has registered people to vote at events all summer, from the Southern Heritage Classic to the Cooper-Young Festival.
“Any good strategy is rooted in context and conditions, and I think the context and the conditions that really shape this race are the redistricting that happened, which is one part of a broader set of attacks on working-class people, on Black people, by the far right in this country, and by our current federal administration,” Ransby-Sporn said. “The redistricting happens on top of Medicaid cuts, SNAP cuts, cycle after cycle after cycle of gerrymandering in Tennessee, and so I do think those are things that have made a lot of people pay attention.”
Could anger over redistricting lead to increased turnout?
As the first day of early voting concluded, a group of volunteers bustled around a room at First Congregational Church. They wrote postcards, called potential voters and sent text messages reminding voters that polls are open.
“I think that redistricting has had a little bit of a reverse effect,” said Hayden Williamson, a program director at Latino Memphis. “I think that it has made a lot of people realize that our vote matters, and it matters so much that people are trying to suppress it. And so, voters have had a lot of momentum and willingness to get out there and show up and let them know that the people of Shelby County want to be heard.”
Cicely Sharp, Shelby County organizer with Organize Tennessee, agreed. The organization used to focus on poll observing, but after redistricting it moved to voter engagement. On their first day canvassing, they knocked on 700 doors, asking people if they knew about redistricting and helping them figure out which district they were in. They’ve canvassed eight more times since then, she said.
“The people that we talked to, they were really upset about the redrawing of districts because they felt like it was something that just came out of the blue,” Sharp said.
Redistricting isn’t the only issue bringing infrequent voters to the polls. Yuleiny Escobar, organizing director of Votes For All, said that as that organization has done door-to-door canvassing, they’ve spoken to many Memphians who are concerned about the Memphis Safe Task Force and ICE activity that has “kidnapp(ed) families, babies, children.”
While the task force itself isn’t on the ballot, the governor’s race is. Republican nominee U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn has supported the task force, while the Democratic nominee, Memphis City Councilwoman Jerri Green, has opposed it.
“Many other young people that had never had an interest before are reaching out, saying, ‘How do I register?’” Escobar said.
Ian Randolph, head of the Shelby County Voter Alliance, said he wants to say that people are particularly motivated to vote in this election, but turnout numbers from August didn’t show that. He said he’ll wait until Election Day to see how well groups like his bolstered turnout.
He often speaks to people who don’t know there’s an election or who they should vote for, Randolph said. Many don’t know what various constitutional amendments on the ballot mean.
“We still got a lot of work to do,” Randolph said. “Memphis is a wonderful city, and the Black population, along with our allies here, are in a unique position to help make this a really big, successful Black-run city and county, but it’s gonna take the African American community turning out along with their allies.”
Voting resources
Need a ride to the poll? Call 901-521-1343 to schedule your ride. Volunteers are organized by the NAACP, Shelby County Voter Alliance and Black Clergy Collaborative of Memphis.
Want to check out a sample ballot? Visit https://www.vote411.org/ for a resource guide put together by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters Education Fund.
Want to check your voter registration status? Visit https://tnmap.tn.gov/voterlookup/ to check your registration status
Need to report voting irregularities or voter suppression? You can reach an election protection hotline at 866-687-8683 for free, nonpartisan assistance with voter intimidation, registration problems, denial of ballots and other issues.
Election protection hotlines are also available in:
Spanish: 888-839-8682
Asian languages: 888-274-8683
Arabic: 844-925-5287
Katherine Burgess is the government accountability reporter for MLK50: Justice Through Journalism. Contact her at katherine.burgess@mlk50.com
This story is brought to you by MLK50: Justice Through Journalism, a nonprofit newsroom focused on poverty, power and policy in Memphis. Support independent journalism by making a tax-deductible donation today. MLK50 is also supported by these generous donors.