Lamar campaign rolls out County Mayor endorsements

Facing no primary opposition, incumbent U.S. Senator marks his territory for general election

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

Lamar Alexander

Tennessee's senior U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander faces no competition in tonight's political primaries, but hours before the polls closed, he has marked significant territory going into the November general election.

In just a few hours, Alexander will learn which Democrat he will face in November – Nashville attorney and former Tennessee Democratic Party chair Bob Tuke, former Knox County Clerk Mike Padgett or Nashville businessman Kenneth Eaton.

Apparently, Alexander's team has decided to give the winner of that race a little present tonight by rolling out a list of county mayors they probably shouldn't bother seeking counsel from. Lamar's already locked them up for November.

The statewide list includes prominent names like Shelby County's A.C. Wharton, Hamilton County's Claude Ramsey and Knox County's Mike Ragsdale. All said, Alexander's list includes 50 county mayors.

There are 95 counties in Tennessee, which means Alexander has already lined up the majority. It will be interesting to see if the Democratic nominee can rein in the rest.

Here is the endorsement list:

Anderson County Mayor Rex Lynch
Bledsoe County Mayor Gregg Ridley
Blount County Mayor Jerry Cunningham
Bradley County Mayor Gary Davis
Carter County Mayor Johnny Holder
Cheatham County Mayor Bill Orange
Claiborne County Mayor Joe Duncan
Clay County Mayor Dale Reagan
Cocke County Mayor Iliff McMahan
Cumberland County Mayor Brock Hill
Dekalb County Mayor Mike Foster
Dickson County Mayor Robert Stone
Dyer County Mayor William R. Hill
Fayette County Mayor Skip Taylor
Fentress County Mayor John Mullinix
Grainger County Mayor Mark Hipsher
Greene County Mayor Alan Broyles
Hamblen County Mayor David W. Purkey
Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey
Hancock County Mayor G. Greg Marion
Hawkins County Mayor Crockett Lee
Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith
Henderson County Mayor Dennis Ray McDaniel
Houston County Mayor G.E. Clark
Jackson County Mayor Charlie Hix
Jefferson County Mayor Alan Palmieri
Johnson County Mayor Dick Grayson
Knox County Mayor Mike Ragsdale
Lake County Mayor Macie Robertson
Lauderdale County Mayor Rod Schuh
Lewis County Mayor Kenneth R. Turnbow
Loudon County Mayor Doyle E. Arp
Macon County Mayor Shelvy Linville
Madison County Mayor Jimmy Harris
McMinn County Mayor John Gentry
McNairy County Mayor Jae Templeton
Montgomery County Mayor Carolyn P. Bowers
Perry County Mayor John Carroll
Roane County Mayor Mike Farmer
Robertson County Mayor Howard Bradley
Rutherford County Mayor Ernest Burgess
Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters
Shelby County Mayor A.C. Wharton, Jr.
Smith County Mayor Michael Nesbitt
Sullivan County Mayor Steve Godsey
Trousdale County Executive Jerry Clift
Unicoi County Mayor Greg Lynch
Washington County Mayor George Jaynes
Wayne County Mayor Jason Rich
Wilson County Mayor Robert Dedman