The politics of the Memphis, TN Metro Area are shaped by the diverse backgrounds and interests of its inhabitants. In recent years, the area has seen an uptick in political engagement among its citizens, with many candidates running for local offices that represent a variety of perspectives. Several groups have formed to help promote civic engagement in the region, such as the Memphis Citizens' Forum which works to ensure informed conversations about local issues and encourages citizens to participate in civic life. The Memphis Bar Association is also active in engaging citizens on important topics facing the region. Memorandum, an organization dedicated to advancing equity for people of color, has held multiple public meetings to highlight issues such as housing affordability and racial disparities. With so much passion and energy invested into local politics, it is clear that the people of the Memphis Metro Area are ready to shape their own future and create a more equitable society for all who live there.
The political climate in Memphis Metro Area is somewhat liberal.
In Memphis Metro Area 56.2% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 42.1% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 1.7% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, the Memphis metro area remained strongly Democratic, 56.2% to 42.1%.
The Memphis metro area voted Democratic in every Presidential election since 2000.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Memphis Metro Area is somewhat liberal.
Tennessee is moderately conservative.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Memphis, Tennessee: d d D D D D
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D for the Democrat and I for the Independent. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last four elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Memphis Metro Area
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 27,231 contributions totaling $2,652,091 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $97 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 14,395 contributions totaling $8,140,414 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $566 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)