Redrawn 5th Congressional District opens door to high-profile, competitive GOP primary

U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper's retirement and the prospect of a newly drawn 5th Congressional District, one that includes all or parts of five conservative counties, is likely to lead to a competitive, robust Republican primary this year.

The Republican redistricting plan splits Davidson County three ways and has already cleared through the GOP supermajorities in the state House and Senate.

All that's left is for a signature from Gov. Bill Lee, who hinted at an event earlier in the week he plans to approve the new maps.

Cooper, D-Nashville, has represented Nashville since 2003 and with his announcement, there will be no incumbent running in the new 5th Congressional District. Incumbent U.S. Reps. John Rose, R-Cookeville, and Mark Green, R-Clarksville, represent the 6th and 7th congressional districts, respectively, the other two district which will take in parts of Nashville.

The new 5th includes parts of Davidson, Williamson and Wilson counties, along with rural Lewis, Maury and Marshall counties.

NOT SEEKING REELECTION: US Rep. Jim Cooper will not seek reelection after GOP redraws Nashville congressional district

Veteran Republican political consultant Tom Ingram said Cooper's retirement says a lot of a Democrat's chance of winning the new district, which means the Republican primary should draw the attention of a lot of candidates.

"It will lead to a vigorous primary on the Republican side that will likely be fought more from the right side of the party than the center," Ingram said.

Kent Syler, a professor of political science at Middle Tennessee State University, said it will be difficult for someone from Davidson County to win the new 5th seat because of the amount of rural voters in the district.

"Potentially in crowded primary with the rural voter broken up a suburban Republican from Davidson County could have a path to victory but it will be hard," Syler said.

Below is a list, in alphabetical order, of potential Republican candidates said to be considering a run, including some who had already announced campaigns before the map changed.

Beth Harwell

Former Speaker Beth Harwell said Wednesday she is mulling a potential run for the 5th.

"I'm still mulling my final decision, but it's a district that deserves good conservative representation," Harwell said when reached by phone Wednesday.

Harwell was a political science professor at Belmont University when she launched her first bid for political office in 1986, which failed. But two years later, she won election and served in the Tennessee House of Representatives from 1989 to 2019 in a district encompassing parts of southwest Davidson County.

She ascended to speaker in 2011, the only woman to hold the role in Tennessee history. Harwell gave up the gavel after an unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign in 2018.

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Harwell said she expects to come to a final decision on a possible congressional campaign by mid-February.

Candidates can begin picking up paperwork to run on Feb. 7, with an April 7 qualifying deadline.

Baxter Lee

Nashville entrepreneur Baxter Lee filed a statement of candidacy in the district on Jan 31, though he's yet to make an official campaign announcement.

Quincy McKnight

Nashville business man Quincy McKnight is the CEO of a privately held payment processing company. He announced his candidacy for the 5th district in May 2021.

This isn't McKnight's first foray into politics. He previously ran in the Republican primary for the District 21 Tennessee Senate seat representing parts of Nashville, and lost in a three-way primary race.

Morgan Ortagus

Morgan Ortagus announced she was running on Feb. 7.

Ortagus is a former spokesperson for the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and received a preemptive endorsement from former President Donald Trump.

"I couldn’t be happier because she’s an absolute warrior for America First and MAGA!" Trump said in fundraising email connected to his own political action committee. "Morgan was fantastic in her role working with Secretary Mike Pompeo at the U.S. State Department and understands the threats posed by China, Russia, Iran and others, and will be tough, not just roll over like the Democrats and RINOs."

Trump said Ortagus has "Complete and Total Endorsement if she decides to run."

Before joining the state department, Ortagus was a national security contributor on Fox News and occasionally appears on the network. Ortagus is a Florida native and began her career working on political campaigns in the Sunshine State, before moving to federal government roles.

She worked in both the Obama and George W. Bush administrations, serving as spokesperson with the U.S. Agency for International Development before moving to the Treasury Department as an intelligence analyst.

Ortagus does not have strong name recognition in Tennessee, where she appears to have been a resident for less than a year.

She joined Rubicon Founders, a health care investment firm based in Nashville, in early 2021, though a Rubicon phone number listed under her name was not active on Wednesday.

More: Morgan Ortagus announces Trump-backed run for Tennessee's new 5th Congressional District

Robby Starbuck

Trump's preemptive endorsement may have come as a surprise to Robby Starbuck, a Franklin resident who announced his bid for the 5th District last year, well before the final congressional boundaries were announced.

Starbuck, a California native, relocated to Williamson County in 2019. A Cuban American, Starbuck said last year he thinks his heritage will help him make in-roads with Latino voters and other communities that "traditionally have not felt outreach."

"When I filed to run, I said we’d make Jim Cooper retire," Starbuck said in a social media statement Tuesday following Cooper's announcement. "We did it before we got to Election Day. A new era begins now. In TN5 I’ll fight to put America First, make sure mandates never happen again, fix our economy, hold China accountable and much more!"

STARBUCK RUNS FOR CONGRESS: Robby Starbuck, a Franklin Republican, runs for Congress in Nashville with Rand Paul's endorsement

Before Trump's endorsement of Ortagus, Starbuck had amassed support among many high-profile, far-right media personalities and politicians. He received the early backing of U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. Starbuck has not directly responded to Trump's statement, but he shared multiple social media posts from others chastising Trump's endorsement.

Starbuck, whose legal name is Newsom, is a former former director and producer of music videos and commercials. Starbuck said last year he currently is an investor in real estate and the stock market.

Kurt Winstead

Brig. Gen. Kurt Winstead, the former director of the joint staff for the Tennessee National Guard, has floated his own name in the mix for the 5th.

Winstead retired from the National Guard in 2021 after more than three decades of service. He is also the founding partner of a Nashville law firm.

When Republican legislators announced plans to break up Cooper's 5th District earlier this month, Winstead said he was considering mounting a campaign.

Winstead said Wednesday he's not yet made a final decision.

"Serving the 5th Congressional District is a role I don’t take lightly and one I wouldn’t undertake on a political whim," Winstead said. "We need a true conservative who knows our communities, someone who understands our national security interests and also will look after our growing economy in Middle Tennessee. I’m a strong believer in prayer and we will be listening over these next few days as we make a final decision."

Reach Melissa Brown at mabrown@tennessean.com.

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Morgan Ortagus nabs Trump endorsement for Tennessee 5th, others mull candidacy