Tennessee judge rules gun control questions can go on Memphis ballot

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee judge ruled Wednesday that three gun control questions can go on the November ballot in Memphis, even as top Republican state leaders have threatened to withhold tens of millions of dollars in state funding should city leaders put the initiative before voters.

The Daily Memphian reports that Shelby County Chancellor Melanie Taylor Jefferson sided with the Memphis City Council, which sued the Shelby County Election Commission last month for refusing to put gun control measures on the ballot.

In August, the election commission announced they could not place the questions on the ballot because the Secretary of State’s office had warned they violated several of Tennessee’s laws, making them void and ineligible. In response, the Memphis City Council filed a complaint requesting a judge overrule the commission’s decision.

After a hearing on Wednesday, Taylor Jefferson said the measures could go on the ballot because they had not yet amended the city’s charter and are just proposals. It’s unknown if the commission, who is represented by the state’s Attorney General’s office, will appeal the decision.

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