Democrats Want To Grow Party Numbers

Tennessee may have many Republican voters, but that can change, according to one state Democratic Party official.

Brit Bender, executive director of the Tennessee Democratic Party, spoke to members of the Giles County Democratic Party, in July.

Since taking her position, she has tried to visit as many of the Democratic parties scattered over the 95 counties as she can.

Hendrel Remus, state Democratic Party chairman, has a goal of increasing Democratic influence.

“By the end 2028, we want Tennessee to be a swing state,” she said.

“it wasn’t that long ago that Tennessee was a blue (Democratic) state,” she said.

The state Democratic Party is very focused on voter registration to reach its goal of making Tennessee a swing state, she said.

Before taking her position in Tennessee, Bender was Iowa state director for NextGen America, a political advocacy group.

She also has worked on congressional and other campaigns in Georgia, Michigan, New York and Virginia.

In 2016, she was a field organizer in Pennsylvania when Hiillary Clinton was the Democratic presidential candidate.

A Memphis native, she is a University of Tennessee graduate.

Attorney Evan Baddour, a candidate for Sixth District Giles County Commissioner, said making telephone calls was an effective way to reach voters.

“I’ve been calling people who are registered to vote,” he said.

“With a lot of people, it’s that personal contact that makes the difference.”

Bender briefly described some advantages and disadvantages of ways to reach voters.

Besides getting voters registered, it was pointed out that voters needed come to the polls to vote.

In other business:

• Local Democrats agreed to hold a pizza party as efforts continue to organize a Democratic Party chapter at the University of Tennessee Southern.

• Bender said evaluation continues on a grant application from the local Democrats for voter registration and other party needs. Democratic parties statewide have been invited to apply.