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Memphis-Shelby County residents will vote in an entirely new school board in 2026, meaning five members will have to run for reelection after serving only half of their terms.
The Shelby County Commission voted 7-5 Monday to immediately align school board elections with the general cycle, adopting language directly from a state law passed earlier this year. This comes after months of debate about whether to start the alignment in 2026 or 2030, and questions of whether cutting short board members’ terms is unconstitutional.
Commissioner Michael Whaley sponsored the final version of the resolution, which simply authorizes the state law and does not name a specific start date for election realignment. That returns the language to its original form, which defaults to the next election in 2026.
Whaley said he hopes centering the state law will prevent the commission from being sued. But Megan Smith, a representative from the district attorney’s office, said that protection isn’t guaranteed.
MSCS board members have said the election reset proposal is discriminatory and a form of retaliation. The board has faced heavy criticism and demands from the public for accountability since firing former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January.
Four of the five MSCS board members who will now face shortened terms — Natalie McKinney, Towanna Murphy, Sable Otey, and Stephanie Love — voted to fire Feagins. If reelected in 2026, they would be allowed to serve two full four-year terms again — a potential 10-year total tenure — under new term limits adopted by the commission in August.
Whaley said Monday that the resolution is about “long-term structural change,” not “airing a grievance” with specific people. But Erika Sugarmon, one of the commissioners who voted in opposition, said the measure disenfranchises voters who elected the current board members in 2024.
“If we start overturning elections, where would it end?” she said. “We don’t want to be heavy-handed. We get enough of that from Trump.”
Sugarmon also sponsored a new plan Monday to allow local residents to vote for future recalls of school board members. The commission gave unanimous approval to the proposal, which will come up for an official vote in the coming months.
But the Tennessee state legislature would need to pass a law authorizing that change to the county charter. Residents currently have the power to remove other elected officials from county offices, but not school board members.
Bennie Smith, a state election commissioner, said Monday that recall by referendum is the correct, democratic channel for removing elected officials from office. School board member Natalie McKinney also expressed support for the recall path over election cycle realignment.
The state attorney general has yet to weigh in on the constitutionality of cutting board members’ terms short. In the meantime, commissioner Britney Thornton, who co-sponsored the adopted plan, said community members need to start looking for candidates to run.
“Or else everything that you’ve fought for is for naught,” she told meeting attendees Monday. “We have a seven-month window here.”
Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.
