Vote NO on Ballot Question # 2

A recent change in state law requires Knoxville to change the way we elect city council members beginning in 2025. On voters’ ballots this fall, the last question on the ballot will ask whether Knoxville should adopt an all at-large (i.e. citywide) voting system with six regional at-large seats rather than our six district representatives. To keep Knoxville from moving backward, vote NO!

Knoxville has not had an all at-large/citywide voting system for city council since 1967. At-large voting conflicts with the spirit of the 1965 Voting Rights Act by disenfranchising minority voters who should have the right to elect their own representatives. At-large elections can also be very expensive, making running for office inaccessible to most residents & making those residents who are priced out & their neighbors less likely to participate.

When Knoxville formed city districts in 1968 in response to the Voting Rights Act & allowed district residents to select their top two preferred candidates for city council, Knoxville elected its first Black city councilor in modern times & took a step forward. A return to an all at-large voting system would be a step back by further empowering the wealthy, high-voter-turnout districts in West & North Knoxville, & diluting the votes of other districts & minorities.