Justin Pearson faces a Democratic opponent in Tennessee special election for District 86

Early voting in the special election primary for the Tennessee House of Representatives District 86 opens Friday.

If reelected, Rep. Justin J. Pearson will be sworn in for the fourth time in less than a year.

But first, he’ll have to face a lone Democratic opponent in the June 15 primary and, if he wins that primary, a lone Independent in the general election August 3.

David Page, a previous candidate for the Memphis-Shelby County Schools Board of Education, has filed to run in the primary against Pearson.

In 2022, Page ran for the school board, finishing sixth in a race that was eventually won by Keith Williams.

Page is owner of The Ticket Program, a program that seeks to increase positive behavior among students, and a West Memphis educator, according to his LinkedIn profile.

“We need someone with the determination to stand out in the crowd when it comes to taking care of the needs of the constituents of District 86,” Page posted on his Facebook page. “I have always been an advocate for the people. Because of the lessons learned from my parents (and grandparents), I have a special place in my heart for everyone, especially the most vulnerable individuals.”

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Pearson gained national prominence when he and another state representative, Justin Jones, were expelled from the state House after leading gun reform chants that disrupted House proceedings three days after three 9-year-olds and three adults were shot and killed at The Covenant School in Nashville.

A third representative, Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville, was also threatened with expulsion, but retained her seat by a single vote.

Pearson was originally elected to the District 86 seat in a special election primary in January. Shelby County Commissioners then appointed him, allowing him to be sworn in before the general election in March, in which he had no opponents.

That meant he had already been sworn in twice when he was reappointed by the commission in April after his expulsion.

Among the youngest Black lawmakers in Tennessee, Pearson first came to prominence in Memphis when he co-founded the grassroots organization Memphis Community Against the Pipeline in response to a planned crude oil pipeline that would cut through backyards in South Memphis, particularly in the Boxtown neighborhood.

The work of MCAP, now called Memphis Community Against Pollution, has been credited with stopping the pipeline plans from Plains All American.

“When we went to the well of the House myself, Rep. (Gloria) Johnson and Rep. (Justin) Jones, we said we have an allegiance to a people, people who are tired of business as usual," Pearson said in April. “We do not speak alone. We speak together. We fight together. So a message for all the people in Nashville who decided to expel us: You can’t expel hope. You can't expel our voice. You sure can’t expel our fight.”

A lone Republican, Francis Currie, picked up a petition to run in the primary, but did not return it by the deadline, according to the Shelby County Election Commission.

And in the general election in August, the winner of the primary is slated to face Independent Jeff Johnston.

Early voting in the primary is from May 26 through June 10, with three locations: The Baker Community Center at 7942 Church Road in Millington, Riverside Missionary Baptist Church at 3560 S. Third Street in Memphis, and the Shelby County Election Commission at 157 Poplar in Memphis. Hours are listed online at www.shelbyvote.com.

Katherine Burgess covers government and religion. She can be reached at katherine.burgess@commercialappeal.com or followed on Twitter @kathsburgess.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Justin Pearson has one Democratic opponent in TN District 86 primary