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Incumbent Joyce Dorse Coleman is holding on to her District 9 seat on the Memphis-Shelby County school board by a lead of fewer than 30 votes, according to unofficial results from the Shelby County Election Commission posted Tuesday.
It’s the tightest race in the first Democratic primary election for the MSCS board. T.L. Harris, who was convicted of a felony drug conviction 20 years ago while employed as a Memphis cop, is poised to secure the District 6 Democratic nomination by fewer than 200 votes.
The unofficial election results still need to be certified. But both incumbent candidates are in the lead for their seat nominations, with Michelle McKissack holding over 65% of the District 1 votes and Dorse Coleman holding around 32% of the votes.
Longtime lawyer Tanya Frey holds the lead for District 8 with more than 60% of the vote.
The May 5 election pales in significance compared to previous years because of the Republican-led state takeover that will restrict the locally elected board’s power. Top GOP leaders will soon appoint a nine-member oversight board that will have final say on key budget and staffing decisions in MSCS, including hiring and firing the superintendent. The takeover measure still must be signed into law by Governor Bill Lee.
That state-appointed board must be appointed by July 1, before new local school board members assume office on Sept. 1. Harris and Frey each have to face an independent challenger in the Aug. 6 general election to earn their spots on the local board.
All but one candidate, Damon Curry Morris in District 9, said they opposed a takeover in a Chalkbeat survey. The majority of candidates said they would work collaboratively with the oversight board to prioritize student success.
There’s still a chance MSCS will file a lawsuit against the state takeover legislation — the board voted to hire a lawyer in early April and the county commission passed a resolution to fund that legal action Monday. That’s because the governor signed into law a bill that blocks the district from using public funds to pay for the lawsuit.
Republican lawmakers have long said they’re modeling MSCS’ takeover after a 2023 state intervention in Houston, where one of the first decisions made by state education leaders was to replace the superintendent. The new Houston leader overhauled district curriculum, cut 1,500 central office positions, and implemented a teacher pay model based on test scores.
District 1 board election: Here’s what you need to know
McKissack is running against two MSCS teachers, one with decades of experience and the other in her early career.
Dolores Missy Rivers served as a district teacher for 26 years, and spent the last year as the interim director of the Memphis-Shelby County Education Association. Hailey Marie Thomas started teaching in 2021 and now works as a literacy instructor at MSCS charter school Beacon College Preparatory.
McKissack has been on the board since 2018. She was one of three members to vote against firing former Superintendent Marie Feagins in January 2025.
Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:
- McKissack, 65.4%
- Rivers, 17.9%
- Thomas, 16.3%
District 6 board election: Here’s what you need to know
Five Democratic candidates are running to fill the MSCS board seat being vacated by former teacher union leader Keith Williams.
Marinda A-Williams is a former private school and Germantown teacher, while Juliette Eskridge taught in MSCS for 20 years. Stacey Kelly works as a college advisor for the Tennessee Higher Education Commission.
Harris, the current frontrunner, led a youth violence prevention program for three years. Contessa Humphrey, the final candidate, did not respond to Chalkbeat’s survey.
The primary winner will face independent challenger Frederick Dewayne Tappan in the Aug. 6 general election.
Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:
- A-Williams, 27.9%
- Eskridge, 24.6%
- Harris, 29%
- Humphrey, 6.3%
- Kelly, 11.7%
District 8 board election: Here’s what you need to know
Two Democratic candidates are vying to fill the District 8 seat being vacated by Amber Huett-Garcia. The winner will face MSCS school librarian Leigh Ann Scarbrough, an independent candidate, in the Aug. 6 general election.
Frey, the current frontrunner, worked as a Memphis-based lawyer for over 20 years and now runs Terra Firma Consulting, an organization that advises nonprofits on leadership decisions.
Ayleem Connolly taught high school Spanish in MSCS from 2015 through 2023 and chaired East High’s language department for two years.
Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:
- Connolly, 38.5%
- Frey, 60.9%
District 9 board election: Here’s what you need to know
Dorse Coleman, a longtime MSCS board member, is facing four Democratic candidates for the District 9 seat.
Jonathan Carroll doesn’t have any business ties to MSCS, but he’s led local and state parent-teacher associations. Incumbent Dorse Coleman has been on the board since 2018 and served as the chair last year.
Tamara Jordan taught in local charter school networks for 15 years and served as the dean of Freedom Preparatory Academy. Curry Morris is the only 2026 candidate in favor of the state takeover of MSCS and worked closely with Nashville lawmakers to develop the bill.
Louis Morganfield III is the building engineer at Ida B. Wells Academy, a beloved MSCS school that will close at the end of this year.
Here are the unofficial election results, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday:
- Carroll, 21.1%
- Dorse Coleman, 32.3%
- Jordan, 31.8%
- Morganfield, 6.7%
- Curry Morris, 7.5%
Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.
