Mumpower gets commitments for Speaker of the House

All 50 members of GOP caucus sign their name to a commitment to elect a Republican speaker

Email | Print By A.C. Kleinheider

Jason Mumpower

One week to the day after a historic election yielded Republicans their first majority in the Tennessee State House since Reconstruction, Republican Leader Jason Mumpower has more good news. He has received signatures of support from all 50 (himself included) incumbent and newly elected members of the GOP caucus on a letter of intent to vote for a Republican Speaker of the House.

The letter means that Mumpower is on a real winning streak as of late. Last week, he escaped a potential challenge to his leadership within the caucus by former TNGOP Chair Beth Harwell, who threw him her support and then he was able to corral State Representative Kent Williams to stay in the fold.

Williams is a moderate Republican from East Tennessee who beat back a primary challenge to his re-election by former State Representative Jerome Cochran, who was supported by some of the more conservative members of the caucus.

Those moves, along with today's letter, considerably dim the prospects that Speaker Jimmy Naifeh will be able to put together a coalition of Democratic members and friendly Republicans, as Lt. Gov. John Wilder was able to do throughout his long career as Speaker of the Senate.