Four now in the mix to fill Tennessee Rep. Mike Carter's District 29 seat
Jun. 16—One Democrat, two Republicans and an independent are eyeing the Tennessee House seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Mike Carter.
Gov. Bill Lee has called a special election for September to fill the District 29 seat once held by Carter, a longtime public servant who died of pancreatic cancer in May after fighting off COVID-19 last year. He represented Ooltewah, Collegedale and Harrison.
With the deadline for interested candidates to qualify for election set for Thursday at noon, three locals have thrown their hats in the ring.
Last week, Democrat D'Angelo Jelks announced his campaign for the seat and qualified with the election commission.
Since then, Republican businessman Greg Vital has been qualified by the election commission, and Republican attorney Hoyt Samples has picked up papers, according to records provided by the commission. On Tuesday, independent Richard Walls picked up papers, but told the Times Free Press he had not yet decided whether he would run.
If any political party has more than one candidate qualified, the nominee for that party will be decided in the June 27 special primary election. If a party has only one candidate, that person will serve as the nominee.
Vital
Vital, 65, is the co-founder of Morning Pointe Senior Living, a buffalo farmer and a resident of Hamilton County for more than 50 years.
In an interview with the Times Free Press on Monday, Vital said he would focus on matters of job development, education, conservancy and other issues that affect his home district, if elected, in an effort to continue Carter's work.
"Over the years, Mike Carter was a friend, and Mike Carter fought for the small man," Vital said of the late representative. "I want to continue those strong conservative principles."
Vital said he chose to run after Carter's widow, Rep. Joan Carter, R-Ooltewah, who was appointed as an interim representative last week, said she would not run in the special election.
"Many people in the community came to me and said, 'You can carry the torch, similar to Mike.'"
Vital has served on a number of state committees and boards overseeing land trusts and conservancy, was a single-term Collegedale commissioner and served on the Erlanger Board of Trustees for six years.
Samples
Samples is an attorney focused on business transactions, estate planning and litigation who has practiced in Chattanooga since 1979, according to the website for his firm, Samples, Jennings, Clem and Fields PLLC.
He received his law degree from the University of Cincinnati in 1979 after studying at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
A representative told the Times Free Press on Tuesday that Samples was traveling and not immediately available for comment.
Walls
Walls is an independent auditor for the city of Chattanooga and says he is considering running for the seat after working in auditing for about 20 years.
Now, he's considering using that experience to serve at the state level.
"The reason I'm considering running is that public service is a priority of mine, and I want to see our community's effective representation in Nashville continue," he said in an email to the Times Free Press. "I have been working as an auditor in local government (county and city) for two decades and feel like my experience and training has prepared me to fill this role."
Walls said health care, workforce development, education and infrastructure would be his top priorities if he were to run and be elected.
"We need to continue to invest in workforce development, education and our infrastructure, as well as strive to hold our healthcare cost down," he wrote. "Our community and state can have a bright future if we work together."
Contact Sarah Grace Taylor at staylor@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6416. Follow her on Twitter @_sarahgtaylor.
