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2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee

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2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee

← 2006 November 4, 2008 (2008-11-04) 2010 →

All 9 Tennessee seats to the United States House of Representatives
Turnout66.34% Increase[1] 16.37 pp
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Democratic Republican
Last election 5 4
Seats won 5 4
Seat change Steady Steady
Popular vote 1,195,542 977,677
Percentage 51.94% 42.47%
Swing Increase 1.76% Decrease 4.14%

     Democratic hold
     Republican hold

The 2008 congressional elections in Tennessee was held on November 4, 2008, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts.

Following the 2008 elections, no seats changed hands, leaving the Tennessee delegation at a 5-4 Democratic majority.

As of 2024, this was the last time Democrats won a majority of congressional districts from Tennessee's House delegation, as well as the House popular vote.

Overview

[edit]
United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee, 2008[2]
Party Votes Percentage Seats +/–
Democratic 1,195,542 51.94% 5
Republican 977,677 42.47% 4
Independents 128,601 5.59% 0
Totals 2,301,885 100.00% 9

(There was 65 Write-in votes that were added to the statewide total number of votes).

Popular vote
Democratic
51.94%
Republican
42.47%
Other
5.59%
House seats
Democratic
55.56%
Republican
44.44%

By district

[edit]
District Incumbent Party First
elected
Results Candidates
Tennessee 1 David Davis Republican 2006 Incumbent lost renomination.
New member elected.
Republican hold.
Tennessee 2 Jimmy Duncan Republican 1998 Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 3 Zach Wamp Republican 1994 Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 4 Lincoln Davis Democratic 2002 Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 5 Jim Cooper Democratic 1982
1994 (retired)
2002
Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 6 Bart Gordon Democratic 1984 Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 7 Marsha Blackburn Republican 2002 Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 8 John Tanner Democratic 1988 Incumbent re-elected.
Tennessee 9 Steve Cohen Democratic 2006 Incumbent re-elected.
  • Green tickY Steve Cohen (Democratic) 87.9%
  • Jake Ford (Independent) 4.9%
  • Dewey Clark (Independent) 4.4%
  • Mary Wright (Independent) 2.8%

District 1

[edit]

This district covers northeast Tennessee, including all of Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, and Washington counties and parts of Jefferson County and Sevier County. It has been represented by Republican David Davis since 2007.

Johnson City mayor Roe narrowly defeated Davis in the Republican primary by a margin of 50% to 49% (only 500 votes).[3] Davis was elected in 2006, succeeding retiring congressman Bill Jenkins, winning the Republican nomination over a crowded field which included Roe. Roe, a retired OB/GYN, was endorsed by several local newspapers, refused PAC and special interest money, and promised not to serve any more than ten years in Congress. He was a shoo-in for election in a district that has only elected Republicans since 1880.

Tennessee's 1st congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Phil Roe 168,343 71.82
Democratic Rob Russell 57,525 24.54
Independent Joel Goodman 3,988 1.70
Independent James W. Reeves 2,544 1.09
Independent T. K. Owens 1,981 0.85
Total votes 234,381 100.00
Republican hold

District 2

[edit]

This district lies in the east-central part of the state, based in Knoxville, and is largely coextensive with that city's metropolitan area. It has been represented by Republican Jimmy Duncan since November 1988. He ran against Democrat Bob Scott. No Democrat has held this seat since 1855. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Republican'.

Tennessee's 2nd congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jimmy Duncan (inc.) 227,120 78.11
Democratic Bob Scott 63,639 21.89
Total votes 290,759 100.00
Republican hold

District 3

[edit]

This district has been represented by Republican Zach Wamp since 1995. His Democratic opponent was Doug Vandagriff. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Republican'.

Tennessee's 3rd congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Zach Wamp (inc.) 184,964 69.37
Democratic Doug Vandagriff 73,059 27.40
Independent Jean Howard-Hill 4,848 1.82
Independent Ed Choate 3,750 1.41
Write-ins 7 0.00
Total votes 266,628 100.00
Republican hold

District 4

[edit]

This district lies in Middle and East Tennessee and includes all of Bledsoe, Campbell, Coffee, Cumberland, Fentress, Franklin, Giles, Grundy, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Marion, Maury, Moore, Morgan, Pickett, Scott, Sequatchie, Van Buren, Warren, and White Counties, as well as portions of Hickman, Roane, and Williamson counties. It has been represented by Democrat Lincoln Davis since 2003. He ran against Republican Monty Lankford. Although the 4th is one of the few districts in the nation that is not considered safe for either party, its size and the fact it includes five television markets make it fairly easy for incumbents to tenure themselves in. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

Tennessee's 4th congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Lincoln Davis (inc.) 146,776 58.76
Republican Monty J. Lankford 94,447 37.81
Independent James Anthony Gray 4,869 1.95
Independent Kevin Ragsdale 3,713 1.49
Total votes 249,805 100.00
Democratic hold

District 5

[edit]

This district lies in Middle Tennessee, including almost all of Davidson County, half of Wilson County, and half of Cheatham County. Nearly two-thirds of the district's voting population lives in Nashville. It has been represented by Democrat Jim Cooper since 2003. He ran against Republican Gerard Donovan. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

Tennessee's 5th congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jim Cooper (inc.) 181,467 65.84
Republican Gerard Donovan 85,471 31.01
Independent Jon Jackson 5,464 1.98
Independent John P. Miglietta 3,196 1.16
Write-ins 4 0.00
Total votes 275,602 100.00
Democratic hold

District 6

[edit]

This district lies in Middle Tennessee, including all of Bedford, Cannon, Clay, DeKalb, Jackson, Macon, Marshall, Overton, Putnam, Robertson, Rutherford, Smith, Sumner, and Trousdale Counties, as well as a portion of Wilson County. It has been represented by Democrat Bart Gordon since 1985. He ran against independent candidate Chris Baker. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

Tennessee's 6th congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Bart Gordon (inc.) 194,264 74.42
Independent Chris Baker 66,764 25.58
Total votes 261,028 100.00
Democratic hold

District 7

[edit]

This district lies in Middle and southwestern Tennessee, connecting suburbs of Memphis and Nashville. It has been represented by Republican Marsha Blackburn since 2003. She ran against Democrat Randy G. Morris. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Republican'.

Tennessee's 7th congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Marsha Blackburn (inc.) 217,332 68.58
Democratic Randy G. Morris 99,549 31.42
Total votes 316,881 100.00
Republican hold

District 8

[edit]

This district covers roughly the northwestern part of the state. It has been represented by Democrat John S. Tanner since 1989. He ran unopposed by any party candidates and encountered opposition from only a few write-in votes. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

Tennessee's 8th congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic John S. Tanner (inc.) 180,465 99.97
Write-ins 54 0.03
Total votes 180,519 100.00
Democratic hold

District 9

[edit]

This district lies in southwestern Tennessee, located entirely within Shelby County and including most of the city of Memphis. It has been represented by Democrat Steve Cohen since 2007, who ran against independent candidates Jake Ford, Dewey Clark, and Taylor Shelby Wright. CQ Politics forecasts the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

Cohen defeated attorney Nikki Tinker by a 79% to 19% margin in the Democratic primary. Cohen, who is the only white congressman representing a majority black district, defeated Tinker, who is black, by a much narrower margin in 2006. There was much controversy over accusations made by the Tinker campaign that Cohen was involved with the Ku Klux Klan, and circulation of anti-Semitic propaganda against Cohen, who is Jewish.[4] No Republican filed in this overwhelmingly Democratic district, although Cohen's primary victory assured him of a second term in any case.

Tennessee's 9th congressional district election, 2008
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Steve Cohen (inc.) 198,798 87.85
Independent Jake Ford 11,003 4.86
Independent Dewey Clark 10,047 4.44
Independent Taylor Shelby Wright 6,434 2.84
Total votes 226,282 100.00
Democratic hold

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Tennessee Voter Turnout in 2008". Tennessee Secretary of State. November 4, 2008. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  2. ^ "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives".
  3. ^ Roe Defeats Davis In 1st District TriCities.com, August 8, 2008
  4. ^ Tenn. Democrat beats lawyer who linked him to KKK Archived August 13, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
[edit]
Preceded by
2006 elections
United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee
2008
Succeeded by
2010 elections