Reinstated Tennessee lawmaker Justin Jones raises almost $1.1 million
Jenny Goldsberry
Video Embed
Tennessee Democratic state Rep. Justin Jones has almost raised $1.1 million this year, likely as a result of his public expulsion earlier in the year.
Jones was booted from the state House along with Democratic state Rep. Justin Pearson in April for their use of a bullhorn to call attention to stricter restrictions on firearms in a breach of decorum. A unanimous vote the next week reinstated them, but it was also in the interim that Jones raised the majority of the money per a report. When combined with Pearson, the pair have raised over $2 million.
STUDENTS FOR DESANTIS REACHES 100 CAMPUSES NATIONWIDE
The majority of Jones’s funds also came from outside of Tennessee, proving that the outburst, despite expelling him from the House, turned out in his favor financially.
On Twitter, Jones has over 307,000 followers. Meanwhile, Republican Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton, who has served in the position since 2019 and in the House for five terms, has over 11,000.
Tennessee has a cap on the number of bills members can file, which was renewed for Jones upon his reinstatement. He committed to filing all 15 of his maximum toward “commonsense gun laws.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
There were 17 mass shootings in the state last year and 14 reported deaths.
Jones is a first-term representative after taking the seat of Democratic state Rep. Mike Stewart, who was a single-term representative. No other Democratic candidates came forward during the primary election on June 15, leaving Jones to face off against Republican opponent Laura Nelson on Aug. 3.