State party rejects challenge to Janeen Gordon's juvenile court clerk primary win
Janeen Gordon will remain the Democratic nominee for Shelby County Juvenile Court Clerk after an ad hoc committee for the Tennessee Democratic Party rejected a challenge to her primary win that had alleged she mislead the public by including her mother's well-known name on the ballot.
“I have used a name that has been very close to my heart and that is “Lil Fullilove” or Janis’ daughter," Gordon said Friday. "I used what was very familiar, very close to me and identifiable, and that was Janeen Fullilove Gordon. I knew this would be the outcome, because at the end of the day I didn’t break any laws and the community believed in me.”
WINS CHALLENGED: Primary wins challenged for juvenile court clerk, commission District 7, District 11
Hendrell Remus, chair of the Tennessee Democratic Party, said the ad hoc election review committee met Thursday to review the challenge to Gordon's primary win.
Pursuant to state law, the candidate must within five days of the certification of results by the county election commission file written notice of contest with the state primary board of the candidate’s party and with all other candidates who might be adversely affected by the contest.
“After review, the committee found that the election challenge of the results of the Shelby County Juvenile Court Clerk race did not meet the threshold for section (b) of the state code because all candidates adversely affected were not notified via written notice prior to or on the May 23, 2022 deadline,” Remus said in a text message. “Therefore, we will not proceed with hearing this challenge.”
Stephanie Gatewood, who came in third place in the race for juvenile court clerk, issued the challenge to Gordon's win due to Gordon appearing on the ballot at "Janeen Fullilove Gordon." Gordon's mother is the current juvenile court clerk Janis Fullilove, although Fullilove is not legally Gordon's name.
Gatewood charged that Gordon "purposely deceived the voters using her mother's name."
There is no statute requiring candidates to use their legal names on the ballot. State law states that, "If no less than four (4) members of the county election commission vote in the affirmative that a candidate's name on the ballot would be confusing or misleading, the county election commission may require further identifying information or may omit any confusing or misleading portion of the name."
Gatewood could not be reached for comment Friday night.
Gordon will face Republican Rob White in the August primary.
There were two other challenges to Democratic primary wins filed with the state party, opposing the wins of Henri Brooks in the Democratic primary for Shelby County Commission District 7 and and Miska Clay Bibbs in the Democratic primary for Shelby County Commission District 11.
Remus did not answer a question regarding whether the ad hoc committee had yet considered those challenges.
Katherine Burgess covers county government and religion. She can be reached at katherine.burgess@commercialappeal.com, 901-529-2799 or followed on Twitter @kathsburgess.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Janeen Gordon will remain Democratic nominee for Juvenile Court Clerk
