Jeremy Durham
| Jeremy Durham | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives from the 65th district | |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Jessica Durham |
| Residence | Franklin, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Occupation | Lawyer, politician |
Jeremy Durham is an American politician. Since January 2013 he has served as the Republican member of the Tennessee House of Representatives for the 65th District, encompassing parts of Williamson County, Tennessee.[1][2]
Early years
Jeremy Durham was born in Jackson, Tennessee and grew up in Adamsville.[3] He graduated from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 2006 and earned a J.D. from the University of Memphis Law School in 2008.[1] From 2009 to 2011 he served as chairman of the Tennessee Young Republican Federation and founded the Tennessee Young Republicans PAC, which raised nearly $25,000 for Republican candidates in Tennessee.[4] He was a partner in the law firm Hawkins, Durham & Associates from 2010 to 2012.[3]
Tennessee legislature
Committee assignments
Durham is a member of the Tennessee House Insurance and Banking Committee, the House Local Government Committee, and the House Local Government Subcommittee.[1] In December 2014, during the 109th General Assembly, he was elected House Majority Whip.[5]
Legislation
As of April 2016 Durham is the primary sponsor of 171 bills.[6]
Awards
He was named "Freshman of the Year, Republican" in 2014 by Tom Humphrey, the Nashville Bureau Chief and primary political correspondent for the Knoxville News Sentinel.[7][8] In January 2013 he was one of the first recipients of the American Conservative Union's Tennessee House “ACU Conservative” award.[9] As part of the Williamson County legislative delegation, he was awarded the 2015 ACU Award For Conservative Excellence, its highest award.[10][11]
Controversies
In January 2016, Durham was accused of sexually harassing three women who worked at the legislature by text message. When speaking to the media about the allegations, Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the Senate Ron Ramsey said, "Obviously, we don't want the press lynching anybody. But the press didn't force anyone to send text messages after midnight asking for pictures."[12] Durham resigned as House Majority Whip on January 24, 2016.[13] On January 27 House Speaker Beth Harwell said she agreed with Ramsey that Durham should be expelled from the state legislature.[14] The Tennessee Attorney General is currently investigating the allegations.[15][16] Durham has said that he did not remember sending the texts. He told the Republican Caucus that he would seek "help", then clarified to the Williamson Herald, a newspaper in his district, that he meant he would speak to his doctor about finding ways to manage stress.[14] Meanwhile, his office has been moved out of the Tennessee State House and restrictions have been placed on his access to state facilities. On April 1, 2016 Durham announced he was running for re-election.[17]
Jeremy Durham wrote to a federal judge in 2014 seeking a more lenient sentence for a youth pastor convicted of possessing child pornography, a move a leading Republican lawmaker Friday called "poor judgment." [18]
Personal life
Durham works as a small business attorney in Franklin, Tennessee.[1][3] He is married to Dr Jessica Durham, an optometrist.[1][2] They reside in Franklin, Tennessee.[2]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Representatives - TN General Assembly". Retrieved January 25, 2016.
- 1 2 3 "Meet Jeremy Durham". jeremydurham4tn.com. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- 1 2 3 "Attorney Jeremy Durham, Franklin, Tennessee". attorneyjeremydurham.com. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ Flagg, Craig (November 4, 2014). "Jeremy Durham retains District 65 seat". The Tennesseean. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ "GOP nominates Harwell, Ramsey to keep leadership posts". The Tennessean. December 10, 2014. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
- ↑ "Tennessee Bills". openstates.org. Sunlight Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ↑ Humphrey, Tom (May 3, 2014). "More superlative performances in the 2014 legislative session". Tom Humphrey's Humphrey On the Hill. Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ "State Rep. Durham Named “Freshman Legislator Of The Year”". advertisernews.biz. The Advertiser News. May 13, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ "ACU Announces 2013 Ratings of the Tennessee General Assembly". conservative.org. American Conservative Union. January 23, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ "Williamson County Legislative Delegation awarded top conservative honors". The Williamson Herald. CMD Publishing. January 21, 2016. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ "Rep. Durham Named Top Conservative In Tennessee". jeremydurham4tn.com. January 21, 2016. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ Ramsey added, "The press didn't force somebody to have an affair with another state rep and force them to resign." Media speculation concluded that Ramsey was insinuating the other state rep was Leigh Wilburn, who resigned in 2015. "Rep. Jeremy Durham denies affair with House colleague who later quit". timesfreepress.com. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ↑ "Jeremy Durham confirms resignation as whip". The Tennessean. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- 1 2 Boucher, Dave (January 27, 2016). "Speaker Harwell: Expel Durham from legislature". The Tennessean. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ Sisk, Chas. "Lawmakers Turn Durham Investigation Over To Tennessee Attorney General". nashvillepublicradio.org. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
- ↑ "GOP Anti-Trans Rep Can't Stop Harassing Women Co-Workers".
- ↑ Balakit, Melanie; Ebert, Joel (April 1, 2016). "Jeremy Durham to run for re-election". The Tennesseean. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ↑ Cowan, Jill (December 11, 2015). "Ramsey: Durham letter in porn case showed 'poor judgment'". The Tennesseean. Retrieved May 3, 2016.