MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Just days away from Election Day, efforts ramp up to keep Memphians informed on several, and in some cases controversial, questions on the ballot.
There are six referendums on the Memphis ballot:
A vote to add a run-off election between the top two finishers in the mayoral race if no candidate gets 50% of the vote.
A vote authorizing the city council to determine their own salaries, as well as the salaries of the Mayor and other chief officers. Currently, those are tied to the county commission.
A vote adding a two-year residency requirement to any candidates for mayor or city council. Multiple candidates in last year’s mayoral race did not live in Memphis.
Would ban carrying a handgun within the city of Memphis without a valid permit. That includes openly carrying a gun and having a handgun in a vehicle without a permit. With a gun permit, the firearm and its ammo can be in a vehicle if it is stored out of sight in a trunk, glove box or locked container securely attached to the vehicle.
Would ban the possession or carrying — open or concealed — of any assault rifles in the city. It would also ban the commercial sale of assault rifles within Memphis. People with existing permits and ownership would be grandfathered in provided they can pass a background check.
- Would allow courts to seize guns from someone who is judged to be a significant danger or extreme risk of harming someone else or themselves. Otherwise known as a red flag law or extreme-risk protection order. This question will be extremely lengthy on the ballot, with the exact process of how those weapons would be taken and returned spelled out in the text.
In the first days of early voting, election officials have already warned these extra questions could take extra time.
On Oct. 30, Abyssinian Baptist Church opened its doors for the sixth conversation in its Let's Talk Politics series. This time, the topic focused around the referendums and connecting national politics to local politics.
The last three referendums on the ballot faced major pushback from state Republicans like House Speaker Cameron Sexton over the summer.
"They're going to get the letter saying, 'You're outside state law, you don't have this capability, you have 'x' number of days to fix it and if you don't, we're going to withhold the state's share's sales tax,'" said Sexton in August.
In September, the state of Tennessee decided to not challenge a ruling that will allow Memphis' gun referendums to be on the ballot.
“They simply don’t understand the law and I’d like to give them free legal advice in this particular situation,” said JB Smiley, Memphis City Council Chairman.
In the aftermath, city leaders like Council Chairman Smiley have done their part to inform voters about the ballot. Smiley said 75,000 mailers were sent to area voters, to break down the legal talk of the referendums on the ballot.
As for how the referendums work, Smiley said it lays the groundwork for the City Council.
Referendums act as a poll for the city, and nothing will happen as direct result of it receiving support or not. Instead, if the referendums pass, it acts as a signal for the City Council to potentially put a new law in place.
Smiley said he would immediately push for a trigger law to go into effect for the gun reform measures.
“We’re focused on protecting the people of Shelby County. If Nashville won’t protect Shelby County, and Nashville won’t protect the city of Memphis, our newly elected leaders and our city and our county must take a stand,” said Smiley.
It can be expected the new laws would be challenged soon after. However, Rev. Earle Fisher with Abyssinian Baptist Church said these referendums could give elected leaders the leverage they need against the state government.
“It’s also helpful for local legislative bodies, if and when they end up in court cases," said Rev. Fisher, "If you put a referendum like this on the ballot and it comes back that this is what 75 to 80 percent of the people in this area want, then the people in Nashville really have to have an honest conversation about what local control actually means.”