State senator backs Cooper primary challenger

Brenda Gilmore

 Photo: Stephen Elliott

Longtime lawmaker Brenda Gilmore, a Democratic state senator from Nashville, is the first local elected official to endorse incumbent U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper’s primary challenger.

Gilmore, who served in the state House and Metro Council before being elected to the Senate in 2018, on Tuesday endorsed Keeda Haynes, a former public defender challenging Cooper in the Democratic primary.