MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Tennessee Democratic Party held their final gubernatorial debate Tuesday night in the Volunteer State before next month's primary.
The stakes were high at the event at Lemoyne-Owen College in Memphis, as the candidates made a final impression to more than 100 voters before early voting begins Friday.
The event featured Dr. Carnita Atwater - a Memphis neighborhood leader, Nashville-area doctor Jason Martin and Memphis City Council member JB Smiley.
The candidates spent a good chunk of the evening agreeing with main points of policy but some differences stood out regarding whether to expand Medicaid, whether to legalize marijuana recreationally and the best approach to economic development.
They also touched on education funding priorities.
"We need to have an education system and a funding system, a formula, for education, that reflects our values and that means where you live, you have a good education," Dr. Martin said.
"Give teachers a decent pay, a regular salary so they could have money to live off of, and not have to spend their money on children, on school supplies, I have spent my own personal money," Dr. Atwater said.
"We talk about how to put children in a better position, I'm going to tell you what you do, you pay teachers, you get them encouraged, so that they can do the very thing we want them to do, to put our children, train our children, put them in better position," Smiley added.
The candidates also laid out how they'd work alongside - or protect district attorneys - in their approach to fighting crime.
"I think all the DA, sheriff's, police officers, all the stakeholders should come together, and we come together with a comprehensive community prevention plan," Dr. Atwater said.
"The General Assembly has the power a special prosecutor to override local communities, we need to fight that y'all, we need to make sure that the power of protecting communities stays close to folks in those communities," Dr. Martin added.
"We need to make sure that we are electing people that working hand in hand with the district attorney's office, making sure we are investing in programs such as the group violence intervention program," Smiley said.
Whoever comes out of the Democratic gubernatorial primary will face an uphill battle against presumptive Republican and incumbent Gov. Bill Lee.
The last time a Democrat won a governor's race in Tennessee was 2006.