Representative Buck Will Not Run for Re-election

After 36 years in the state legislature, State Representative Frank Buck says he will step down.

The lawyer from Dowelltown in DeKalb County is one of the senior members of the state Democratic Party. Several years ago, Buck allowed his name to be floated as a possible opponent to House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh. He was punished by the loss of his chairmanship of the powerful House Judiciary Committee.

Buck was known as a hard-liner when the legislature took up new ethics measures, after the FBI’s “Tennessee Waltz” sting, which caught five lawmakers taking bribes.

And he eventually worked backed into a leadership position by becoming the chair of the House Conservation & Environment Committee.

In a written statement, Buck said, “During the course of 36 years, I have been everything from the ethical hero to the illegitimate child at the family reunion.”