For the August election, precinct boundaries and election dates will remain the same, according to the Shelby County Election Commission. Shelby County voters can visit shelbyvote.com to access the revised maps and the district lookup tool available on the state’s website.
“Obviously, we’d like as much time as we can possibly get, but our office is required to execute elections according to the law; and last week’s redistricting plans present an aggressive timeline for our team, but we will do our job effectively and execute the August election according to the new parameters, unless instructed otherwise,” said Linda Phillips, the Administrator of Elections for Shelby County, Tuesday, May 12.during today’s media briefing.
Since U.S. Congressional district lines don’t have to follow precinct locations, there are no precinct location changes for the August election related to redistricting, Phillips said.
The commission outlined further guidelines for candidates and voters:
- The new qualifying deadline for the U.S. Congressional seats is Friday, May 15 at noon.
- Anyone who originally qualified to run for the congressional district seat can still run, but they must notify the state coordinator whether they plan to run in the same district or a different district.
- New congressional candidates can pick up a petition from the Shelby County Election Commission, but they must file the petition in Nashville by Friday, May 15 at noon.
- All election dates and times, including early voting and election day, will remain the same.
- The Shelby County Election Commission is ramping up its efforts and updating the website at shelbyvote.com to reflect the following:
- Revised maps are now available from the home page through a direct link to the state website.
- The district lookup tool has been updated by the state and available through shelbyvote.com. Voters can go online, put in their address and see whether their congressional district has changed.
- The local district lookup tool is expected to be available on the website early next week.
“We have requested and expect to receive about $350,000 from the state that will allow us to pay overtime costs and vendor rush fees, and mail information to voters whose precincts have changed,” Phillips said.
In addition, the Shelby County Election Commission will certify the unofficial May primary election results next Thursday, May 21, during their regular commission meeting.
