Tennessee: Ogles Claims 5th District; Dem Gov Undecided

The Volunteer State voters engaged in the country’s only Thursday primary, and the open 5th District (Rep. Jim Cooper-D retiring) was the evening’s key race.  The crowded Republican primary winner was Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles.  He defeated former state House Speaker Beth Harwell and retired National Guard General Kurt Winstead along with six others. 

Redistricting transformed this seat into a Republican domain, so Mr. Ogles becomes a heavy favorite to defeat state Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville) in the general election.  The three incumbents who faced competition, Reps. Charles Fleishmann (R-Chattanooga), David Kustoff (R-Germantown), and Steve Cohen (D-Memphis) were all easily renominated.
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The Democratic Governor’s nomination is still undecided.  With 98% of the vote counted, physician Jason Martin leads Memphis City Councilman J.B. Smiley, Jr. by only 1,468 votes.  Gov. Bill Lee was unopposed in the Republican primary.  He will be the prohibitive general election favorite over either Messrs. Martin or Smiley.