GOP Rutherford chair: 37K Trump voters didn't vote Nov. 3. Democrats win 'earthquake' election
Rutherford County Democrats say they expect to build on flipping 3 state legislative seats and winning countywide votes for governor and federal offices. "We will always be competitive going forward," said Matt Fee, chair of the Rutherford County Democratic Party . "What happened here in Rutherford County (election) night truly was an earthquake in Rutherford county politics ." Democrats have faced a Republican Party that has dominated Rutherford elections since 2010, when the GOP swept the county's votes for local, state and federal seats. Prior to 2010, Democrats, including former U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon , of Murfreesboro, held a majority of combined federal, state and countywide seats in partisan elections to represent Rutherford. Gordon chose not to run for reelection in 2010, knowing a Republican-dominated state legislature would be redrawing his district to capture the seat, said Kent Syler, who served as the 26-year chief of staff for Gordon's Tennessee offices. "No one could have expected the Democrats to perform that well in Rutherford County," said Syler, referencing the most recent midterm. He's served as a political science professor since 2011 for Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. "I don’t know that any county in Tennessee had a bigger turnaround
Rutherford County, TN · 1d
