All of the seats in the state House of Representatives were up for re-election this year, and while a few faced primary challengers, most came out on top.
Franklin Republican Charles Sargent, who faced his first primary opponent since taking office, won handily over Connie Reguli. With all precincts reporting, Sargent garnered 5,067 votes to Reguli’s 1,199 votes.
East Tennessee State Representative Stacy Campfield, who has built a reputation for sponsoring bills so far to the right that even most staunch conservatives don’t take them seriously, won over attorney Ron Leadbetter, a local leader within the Republican party. In the last legislative session, Campfield couldn’t pass a single bill.
In Rhea County, the GOP primary was a race between two incumbents – of sorts. Jim Vincent once held the seat, but chose not to run in 2004. Jim Cobb was his successor, and the two faced off in a close race. Jim Cobb won with 59% of the votes. Vincent captured 41%.
In the state Senate, the even numbered seats were up for election. And on the most watched list was District 26. That seat is up for grabs for the first time in decades, because of longtime speaker John Wilder’s recent retirement. State Representative Dolores Gresham narrowly beat opponents Bob Shutt and Tim Linder in the Republican primary for the seat. She’ll face democrat Randy Camp in the November general election.
Former state Senator Jerry Cooper’s seat will be fought over by democrat Eric Stewart who won over Steve Roller, who was appointed to serve out the remainder of Cooper’s term. Roller was probably the shortest-lived incumbent, serving only a few months.
The closest race was played out in Clarksville between incumbent Rosalind Kurita and Tim Barnes. Kurita eeked out a victory, barely.
Meanwhile, state Senator Raymond Finney was one of two incumbents who lost their primaries. Doug Overby beat Finney to serve state Senate District 8. GOP Congressman David Davis lost his first primary to Johnson City Mayor Phil Roe.
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