Sources inform me that Rep. Andrew Farmer has dropped out of challenging Republican Majority Leader Rep. William Lamberth later this month in TN State House Republican Caucus Elections.
Leaving the only contested election to be Caucus Chair between Rep. Robin Smith and Jeremy Faison.
I first met Smith when she was First Vice Chair of the TN Republican Party and I was Knox County Republican Party Chairman. It was during that time that the foundation was being laid for a Republican majority in Tennessee. Smith went on to be TN Republican Chair and the walls, roof and Republican majority became seated in Tennessee.
As a new State Representative, Speaker Cameron Sexton placed her as a Committee Chair.
In 2020, the Republican Caucus raised less than $30,000 in campaign fundraising as reported in campaign financial disclosures and by The Tennessee Journal on October 16, 2020.
The Democrats raised $260,000. Raising money is a shared responsibility between the Majority Leader and Caucus Leader according to the Caucus bylaws.
Speaker Sexton and Majority Leader Lamberth certainly helped to return the 73 Republican Representatives with their campaign funds and campaign leadership funds. Rep. Smith also served on the caucus campaign committee helping return those 73 Republican Representatives and between her own campaign and leadership campaign account raised $100,000 this Summer.
Certainly the caucus should reflect diversity in its leadership with a competent female Caucus Chairman and Smith fits that position, in my humble opinion.
Robin Smith speaking and inspiring the next leaders.
People like Smith and myself who have invested and sacrificed to grow our majority do value what we have in Tennessee, because we know what Tennessee was under a Democrat Majority.
To the contrary, those who haven’t invested and sacrificed to grow our majority don’t value it.
