Shocker at the state legislature
Kent Williams elected House Speaker

Proving that a tiny majority can't be predicted, the Tennessee House of Representatives elected Kent Williams Speaker.

A Republican who lives in Butler, Tennessee, Williams is the first Republican to be elected Speaker of the House since Bill Jenkins was chosen 40 years ago. He is also only the second Republican to hold this office since the Reconstruction Era.

But these two points don't begin to allude to the drama of Williams' election. Two months ago, 50 of the 99 state House races were won by Republicans. Since that time, it has become largely anticipated that Republican Representative Jason Mumpower of Bristol would be elected House Speaker, replacing Jimmy Naifeh of Covington, who has held that position since 1991.
However, that's not the way things played out. At today's organizational session of the Tennessee General Assembly, House members were sworn in by Janice Holder, Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court. They then turned their attention to electing a new Speaker, and things got very interesting.

First, Republican Charles Sargent of Franklin nominated Mumpower, and his motion was seconded by Susan Lynn of Lebanon. Then, after a series of parliamentary manuevers and a short recess, Democrat Gary Odom of Nashville nominated Kent Williams (which came as a shock to most people in the Chamber, who expect him to nominate fellow Democrat Jimmy Naifeh). In his remarks, Odom said it was the first time that a native of Carter County had been nominated for the position of Speaker by another native of Carter County.

The vote was then taken, and it was a voice vote, made one name at a time. The clerk went through the Democratic names first, and all 49 Democrats voted for Williams. He then went through the Republican names. The first 49 representatives on the list all called out the name "Munpower." But the last one on the list was Williams, who voted for himself.
Speaker Kent Williams
As Williams addressed the House a few minutes later, some boos could be heard in the Chamber. He made a short speech in which he said that his election wasn't about Naifeh or Mumpower, but about change. He said he wanted all legislators and voices to be heard, and he said he would work with both parties and appoint committee chairs of both parties based on experience.

A few minutes later, during another short recess, House Republicans (without Williams) filed out of the Chamber and into a closed-door strategy sesson. When the House reconvened, Speaker Pro Tem Lois DeBerry was relected to that position by a vote of 50-49, with all 49 Democrats and one Republican (Williams) voting for DeBerry and the other 49 Republicans voting for Beth Harwell of Nashville.

Williams is generally viewed as a moderate by his peers. He lists as his professions farmer and restaurant owner. His business is in Elizabethton and his home is in Butler -- a place discussed in some length in the virtual tour of the Butler Museum (click here to see it).

Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey
Also at the General Assembly today, Republican Ron Ramsey was re-elected to be Speaker of the Senate, a position synonymous with Lieutenant Governor in Tennessee. The vote was 19-14, with all Republicans voting for him and all Democrats voting against him.

The General Assembly is scheduled to elect constitutional officers tomorrow. Those are Comptroller, Treasurer and Secretary of State.

Across Tennessee, numerous news organizations are producing stories about today's events. Click here to see the one produced by the Memphis Commercial-Appeal and click here to read the one produced by The Tennessean.

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