Meet Delishia Porterfield, candidate for Nashville Metro Council At-Large
Editor's note: The Tennessean Editorial Board invited candidates for the 2023 Metro Nashville-Davidson County municipal elections to fill out our questionnaire. They include biographical information and answers to 12 questions on variety of topics from key policy issues to their recommendation for visitors on what to see or do in the city.
Election Guide: Learn about candidates running in the Sept. 14 Metro Council At-Large election
Key dates:
Aug. 15: Voter registration deadline
Aug. 25-Sept. 9: Early voting
Sept. 7: Deadline to request absentee ballot
Sept. 14: Runoff election
Biographical information
Name: Delishia Porterfield
Which office are you seeking? Metro Council At-Large
Age: 41
What neighborhood/part of the county do you live in? Castlegate Community; Southeast Nashville
Education: After transferring from Howard University, I earned a Bachelor of Science (BS) Degree in Africana Studies and a Master (M.Ed.) of Special Education with a concentration of Mild to Moderate Disabilities for students K-12, both from Tennessee State University.
Job history: I currently work as the director of leadership and advocacy for Stand Up Nashville. Prior to getting elected to the council, I worked in public education for almost a decade. I taught students with disabilities and later worked as liaison between the schools, families and the Board of Education to help support some of our most vulnerable students.
Family: I have a beautiful, smart, sweet and compassionate 16 year old daughter, JaNiya. We also have 2 rescue fur babies; an American Pit-Bull Terrier named 7 and a kitten named Violet.
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Twelve questions for the candidates
Why are you running for this office?
Over the last four years, I have been fully present for my district while being fully present for the issues that are shaping Nashville: addressing equity, fighting for education, advocating for more diversity on our city’s Boards and Commissions, and defending democracy. The issues that I am most passionate about and the fights that I am called to fight to transcend district boundaries and impact all Nashvillians. I am running for Metro Council At-Large because Nashville needs a battle tested legislator with a strong moral compass that is a champion for working people. We need someone who is willing to stand up in the face of injustice and work hard to find creative solutions to address the issues that Nashville is facing.
What makes you qualified to hold this office and better qualified than your opponent(s)?
I believe my experience makes me highly qualified for this position. I currently serve as the chair of the Minority Caucus and vice-chair of the Public Health and Safety Committee. I’ve previously served as the chair of the Education Committee and vice-chair of Budget and Finance, as well as served on Government Operations and Health, Hospitals and Social Services Committees. As Budget and Finance vice-chair, I worked tirelessly with Councilmember Kyonzte’ Toombs to pass Nashville’s most progressive budget, making Nashville teachers the highest paid in the State.
I understand deeply the importance of education to Nashville. After earning both my bachelor's and master's degrees from TSU, I began working as a professional educator. I’ve taught special education students at Antioch and Thurgood Marshall Middle Schools and served as a Special Education Department Chair, a student council adviser, School Culture and Climate chair, and a cheer coach. I’ve also worked as a special education coach for over a dozen Metro Nashville public schools, served as the Faculty Advisory Committee chair for itinerant staff and was a proud, dues paying member of MNEA.
I am a life-long Tennessean. I am a single mother who knows what it means to work full-time, balancing your career and your family. I am not independently wealthy; I know what it means to live pay check to check and the relief that you feel when you are no longer in that financial position. I have worked on $33,000 budgets up to $3 billion budgets. I work with elected officials across the country looking at policy and best practices in an effort to improve the quality of life for Nashvillians. I currently sit on the board for The Destiny Theatre Experience, a Nashville theater company, as well as eMpowerment Inc. and Ignite Her Pursuit, both non-profit organizations that partner with schools in Southeast Nashville.
Every day that I show up, I bring my lived experiences with me. I have learned so much about governance over the last four years. Council has a steep learning curve and Nashville needs a someone who is ready to serve day one on the job! Ultimately, Nashvillians will choose five At-Large members this election. It’s important that the At-Large members represent a range of communities and voices so I am not focused on why any candidate is less qualified but rather I am focused on sharing my perspective and voice with voters in hopes of earning their vote.
If you are elected (or re-elected), what are your top 2 to 3 priorities for your new (or next) term in office?
I am focused on ensuring that working people in Nashville have an opportunity to thrive. That means creating more affordable housing, increasing wages for metro workers and creating more opportunities for diverse voices on metros boards and commissions.
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What are you hearing most from voters about what they want you to accomplish, if elected?
Everywhere I go I hear from people being priced out of our city. House and rent costs keep rising while wages are stagnant and people feel like they don’t have enough of a voice at the table when decisions are being made. People want Nashville to feel like a home again; a place where people live, not just a place where people visit. They want investments in their schools and neighborhoods and they want to know that their voices are heard when important decisions are made in our city.
A 2023 Vanderbilt poll showed that most Nashvillians do not agree with the direction of the city. Do you agree? Why or why not?
I believe Nashville is at a crossroads. The growth of our city has been explosive but has increasingly come at great cost to working folks. Ensuring a future where everyone who lives in Nashville has a chance to succeed means doing everything we can to create more affordable housing, increase wages for working people, fully funding our schools and making sure that every group is represented on the boards and commissions where important decisions are being made daily.
What is your assessment of the performance of the Mayor and Metro Council over the last four years?
Generally speaking, I’m proud of the work that we have accomplished in Nashville over the last four years. In four years we faced a tornado, a pandemic, a derecho, floods, a bombing, a school shooting, an uncertain financial future, and violent attacks from the State. In the midst of uncertainty, we made historic investments in education, affordable housing and have fought for a more equitable budget and a more transparent budgeting process.
While these were highlights, there have definitely been moments when opportunities were missed. Our budget process is still convoluted and inaccessible for many residents. Historically Metro has not prioritized funding for General hospital, services for families from lower-socio economic statuses, and employee pay. The Titans stadium deal is an example of the disconnect between the people of the city and the people making decisions. The deal that was passed underestimated the financial risks and overstated the financial benefits to Metro taxpayers, all without providing nearly enough concrete community benefits to support Nashville’s neighborhoods - and although the majority of Nashvillians didn’t support the deal, the deal still passed. As we move into these next four years, it is important that the council and the mayor work together to put the working people that make our city run front and center when making decisions and prioritize equitable policy decisions.
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Affordable/attainable housing has been named by citizens again and again (NashvilleNext, polling, etc.) as a top concern. What should the city do to address this crisis?
Nashville has an affordability crisis. The administration and council has worked to address the affordable housing crisis through the city’s Housing Division and has implemented several recommendations from the Affordable Housing Task Force. We need dedicated funding for affordable housing and to continue to work with developers and non-profits to find creative solutions to incentivize the building of affordable housing. Lastly, we have to address wages. It doesn’t do any good to have affordable housing if people aren’t making the wages to afford the housing. By paying Metro employees living wages, we are not only taking care of the people who take care of our city, but other industries will in turn have to raise their wages to stay competitive. This will help people earn survival wages and live in our city with dignity.
The Tennessee General Assembly has gutted Metro Nashville's governance model and finances. What is your position on this and how should the city address the relationship with lawmakers?
State preemption (state interference) is something that I am very passionate about. The Economic Policy Institute released a report on Sept. 30, 2020, titled, “Preempting Progress: State interference in local policymaking prevents people of color, women, and low-income workers from making ends meet in the South.” The key findings of the report were that “preemption laws in the South are deeply intertwined with a long history of events that have reinforced anti-Black racism and white supremacy and are passed by majority-white legislatures. Preemption tends to create barriers to economic security in cities whose residents are majority people of color and Southern states are more likely than states in other regions to use preemption to stop local governments from setting strong labor standards that would support people struggling to make ends meet, such as raising the minimum wage and guaranteeing paid sick leave. The ordinances being preempted would disproportionately benefit Black workers and other workers of color, as well as women and low-income workers.”
Simply put, our state legislature passes laws that impede our ability to govern in a way that brings economic justice to working people, specifically people of color in our city. I believe that we have to protect Nashvillians and defend democracy at all costs. I am a firm believer that you shouldn’t start fights, but if a fight is brought to you, you finish it. As councilmembers, we have to focus on equitable legislation that is in the best interest of the people of Nashville. When we can work with the state, we should; however, we cannot sell our souls or acquiesce to the state when they are causing our residents harm. I believe in standing up for what is right, even in the face of adversity. This belief led me to testify against the unconstitutional legislation SB87/HB48 when the state decided that it would over turn the will of Davidson County voters by passing harmful legislation to reduce the size of the Metro Council, as well as join in litigation against the state. Nashville is the economic engine of the state so obviously, there is a lot we are doing right. Metro should explore any and every possibility to protect the residents of Davidson County, including legal options.
Are you supportive of Mayor Cooper's plans to renovate the East Bank now that the Titans deal has been approved? Elaborate on your position.
The thing that makes Nashville great is its’ people! We have culturally rich and diverse neighborhoods that need and deserve investment. I support investing in our current neighborhoods before prioritizing our “next new neighborhood”.
What else do you want voters to know about you that will help them make an informed decision on Election Day?
Nashville is a great city because we have great people who live here. The time for Nashville to prove itself to the rest of the world is over. Now it's time to focus on us. It's time for Nashville to focus on our neighborhoods, our local businesses, and most importantly our people. I am the right person for the job because I always put people over politics. I am a hard worker and love serving the people of Nashville. I have a very strong moral compass and I believe in doing what’s right.
Knowing the struggles of support staff in Metro schools, I passed an amendment giving our lowest-paid MNPS support staff and paraprofessionals a bonus last year. When Metro General Hospital was facing program cuts due to their budget, I passed an amendment providing much-needed funding so that the hospital could expand services to our uninsured and underinsured. When state lawmakers expelled our duly elected representative, Rep. Justin Jones, it was important that he be reinstated as quickly as possible to ensure the constituents of House District 52 continued to have a voice. I helped lead the charge to reinstate Representative Jones as it was important to me that we sent a strong message that we would not take threats to our democracy lightly and we would do everything in our power to protect the will of our voters. That is the type of leader that I have been and if elected, that is the type of leader I will continue to be.
A "fun" question: When visitors ask you, "What should I do in Nashville?" what are the top 2 or 3 things or places you recommend?
I would start by grabbing something to eat at Tony’s Mexican Restaurant or The Original Memphis Wings in Antioch. After dinner, you definitely have to book The Escape Game Nashville! I do Escape Games all over the country and this one is by far the BEST Escape Game franchise that I have ever experienced. After doing The Escape Game, I would recommend going floating in a sensory deprivation tank like at Float Nashville!
Will you commit to being civil in how you present yourself and the way you interact with opponents and others? (Our definition of civility is being a good, active, honest and respectable citizen)
Yes
Call Opinion and Engagement Director David Plazas at (615) 259-8063, email him at dplazas@tennessean.com or tweet to him at @davidplazas.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville election: Delishia Porterfield for Metro Council At-Large
