Jason Martin's inclusion on August's Democratic primary ballot for governor challenged

Samuel Hardiman, Memphis Commercial Appeal
·2 min read

Jason Martin, a Democratic candidate for Tennessee governor, is having his inclusion on the August primary ballot challenged by a former member of the Shelby County Democratic Party's executive committee.

Hendrell Remus, the chair of the Tennessee Democratic Party, confirmed Wednesday the state party received a challenge to Martin's Democratic credentials. Gabby Salinas, the chair of the Shelby County Democratic Party, said the challenge had come from someone in Shelby County. It was passed on to the state party from the local one.

Remus said the challenge stemmed from Martin's openness about his vote for former Ohio Gov. John Kasich in the 2016 Republican presidential primary and his lack of support for state executive committee members during elections.

A subcommittee of the state party's executive committee will first review the challenge, Remus said. Then they will make a recommendation to the party about whether there should be a vote for removal by the whole executive committee.

The party's primary board — the entire executive committee — is scheduled to meet Saturday to review any challenges to any candidates' inclusion on the ballot, Remus said. That leaves little time for a recommendation on whether Martin should be excluded from the ballot.

Jason Martin, a Nashville physician and vocal critic of the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, is seeking the Democratic nomination for Tennessee governor. He is seen here in August.
Jason Martin, a Nashville physician and vocal critic of the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, is seeking the Democratic nomination for Tennessee governor. He is seen here in August.

The filing deadline for the Aug. 4 primary is Thursday, two days before the state party is scheduled vote on the challenge.

The Martin campaign disclosed his vote for Kasich in 2016 when he announced his bid for election last year.

His campaign had not been formally notified of any grievance filed.

It referred The Commercial Appeal to a statement from Aug. 25, 2021 that said, in part, "the Martins proudly supported Hillary Clinton, voted for her in the general, and they even took their children to meet her publicly and proudly when she visited Meharry. During the primary, they saw the storm brewing in the Republican Party. As they believed Hillary would be the inevitable nominee on the Democratic side, like many, they decided to strategically use their vote to vote against the inflammatory Donald Trump in an attempt to keep him out of the White House. "

State Rep. Torrey Harris, D-Memphis, talks with Jason Martin during a July 2021 event in Memphis.
State Rep. Torrey Harris, D-Memphis, talks with Jason Martin during a July 2021 event in Memphis.

Martin faces Memphis City Councilman JB Smiley Jr in the primary.

Salinas, said the challenge had come from Frank Johnson, a former member of the local party's executive committee.

A Democratic candidate's bonafides being challenged is not new. Former state Rep. John DeBerry of Memphis was removed from the ballot in 2020 for his stances on abortion access. He ran in the general election as an independent and lost.

Samuel Hardiman covers Memphis city government and politics for The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached by email at samuel.hardiman@commercialappeal.com or followed on Twitter at @samhardiman.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Jason Martin Democratic primary ballot inclusion challenged