Rep. Steve Cohen ends re-election bid

Rep. Steve Cohen said on Friday, May 15, that he is ending his bid for another term in the U.S. House after Tennessee Republicans redrew his Memphis-based district. The Tennessee Democrat told reporters in Washington that the new map left him running in a district he said no longer resembled the one he has represented for nearly two decades. Cohen said he signed paperwork asking not to appear on the ballot in the new 9th District. He added that he could return to the race if a court challenge restores his old district lines. ### What did Cohen say about stepping aside? Steve Cohen told reporters on May 15, “I don’t want to quit. I’m not a quitter. But these districts were drawn to beat me,” according to Associated Press reporting published Friday. He described the redrawn district as “nothing like the 9th district that I’ve represented,” according to other reports published the same day. (click2houston.com) Friday’s announcement came after Tennessee enacted a new U.S. House map earlier this month that split up Cohen’s majority-Black Memphis district. The Associated Press said the new map reshaped the seat to the GOP’s advantage as part of a broader Republican effort to protect a narrow House majority in the 2026 midterms. (click2houston.com) ### What changed in Tennessee’s map? The Tennessee Secretary of State said the General Assembly adopted revised congressional districts during a May 2026 special session. The state posted the revised district boundaries and opened procedures for candidates affected by the redraw. State election guidance said candidates who had already qualified for the 2026 congressional elections could remain in the district with the same number, switch districts, or withdraw by filing a notarized statement with the State Division of Elections. (click2houston.com) That is the process Cohen said he used to come off the ballot in the new district. (sos.tn.gov) ### How long has Cohen represented Memphis in Congress? Cohen’s House biography says he was elected to the U.S. House in 2006 after 24 years in the Tennessee State Senate. Wikipedia and multiple news reports say he took office in January 2007 and has represented Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District since then. The Memphis Democrat has been one of the state’s most visible congressional Democrats and a longtime member of the House Judiciary Committee. (sos.tn.gov) The Associated Press said he has focused on voting access and civil rights and remains among the last white Democrats representing a Southern district centered on a Black urban base. (cohen.house.gov) ### Is Cohen leaving Congress immediately? Cohen said on Friday that he is ending his re-election campaign, not resigning his seat. His current House term runs through January 2027 unless he leaves office earlier. The congressman also said he is challenging the redistricting plan in court and would reenter the race if that lawsuit succeeds in restoring his old district. (click2houston.com) That leaves his political future tied, at least in part, to the outcome of the litigation over Tennessee’s new map. ### What happens next in the 2026 race? Tennessee’s Secretary of State says the state primary for U.S. House races is scheduled for August 6, 2026, with the general election set for November 3, 2026. The state also said new candidates affected by the redraw had until noon on May 15 to qualify under the revised map. The next concrete milestone is the August 6 primary, when voters in the redrawn 9th District will choose party nominees unless court action changes the map before then. (click2houston.com) (sos.tn.gov)