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The Shelby County Commission appears poised to shorten some Memphis-Shelby County school board members’ terms under a new state law allowing county governing boards to reset local school board elections.
The commission voted 5-1 on Wednesday to advance a resolution to reset the five of the nine board seat terms that are currently up for reelection in 2028. The resolution would also limit school board members to two consecutive terms.
School board members Tamarques Porter, Stephanie Love, Natalie McKinney, Sable Otey, and Towanna Murphy would all be affected under the resolution if the commission formally approves the measure.
Supporters of the measure have argued that aligning elections would reduce overall election administration costs and increase voter turnout.
But the ongoing controversies with the Memphis-Shelby County School Board, particularly after the firing of then-Superintendent Marie Feagins, have contributed to the debate this year. Four of the five members whose terms would be cut short voted to oust Feagins.
Rep. Torrey Harris, a Democrat for Memphis, sponsored the state legislation alongside Sen. Brent Taylor, a Memphis Republican.
Harris argued Wednesday aligning school board elections with broader political elections will increase voter turnout, and the lawmaker signaled there was broad bipartisan and constituent support to make the election changes.
But some see resetting elections as a further accountability measure for the board after the MSCS upheaval this year.
Charles Lampkin, a Memphis resident and MSCS parent, implored the commission on Wednesday to adopt the resolution, calling it a “necessary” piece of legislation to help “right-size” the board.
“We need to put some governance, some structure, on this school board,” Lampkin said.
Commissioner Henri Brooks expressed concerns about truncating ongoing terms of elected officials and losing institutional knowledge on the board.
Brooks offered an amendment that would impose term limits on board members but allow current members to serve out their elected terms.
“What I’ve been careful to do is to not void the votes of voters who previously cast votes,” said Brooks, who warned that effectively voiding votes could cause confusion and voter apathy within the community.
The commission voted down Brooks’ amendment.
A final vote on the resolution could happen as soon as July 28.
Melissa Brown is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Contact Melissa at mbrown@chalkbeat.org.
