NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee voters will decide whether to reelect Republican U.S.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn to a second term or choose Democratic state Rep. Gloria Johnson .
Tennessee hasn't elected a Democrat to a statewide position in nearly two decades, but Johnson is hoping her recent meteoric rise to fame from nearly being expelled by state lawmakers last year will woo enough voters. Blackburn has run a much more subdued campaign compared to six years ago, when an open seat forced a heated race between the Republican and former Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen.
Blackburn has largely avoided Johnson throughout the campaign and declined to participate in any debates with the Democrat. Johnson gained national attention when she joined fellow Democratic state Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones as they walked to the front of the House floor with a bullhorn while hundreds of gun control advocates flooded the Capitol to show their support for putting more restrictions on firearms.
The demonstration took place just days after a school shooting that killed 6 people , including three young children, at a private Christian elementary school in Nashville. The violation of House protocols sparked outrage among Republican lawmakers, who demanded they be expelled — a punishment that had been used only a handful of times since Reconstruction. The showdown between the Democratic lawmakers and the Republican supermajority attracted national attention, amplifying the profiles of the .