Jim Summerville
Jim Summerville is a former Republican senator in the Tennessee State Senate, representing District 25 from 2010 to 2014.
Biography
Summerville obtained a B.A. in political science from the University of Tennessee, an M.A. in English Literature from the University of Iowa, and an M.A. in American History from Vanderbilt University. He has published five books and worked as an adjunct instructor in the Department of Languages and Literature at Austin Peay State University.
Committee assignments
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Summerville served on the following committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Energy, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Vice chair |
| • Government Operations |
| • Government Operations |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Summerville served on these committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Education |
| • Environment, Conservation & Tourism |
| • Government Operations |
Campaign themes
2010
Summerville supported a 10-point platform which would:
- Take the sales tax off groceries
- Cut the cost of state government by at least 20%, beginning with the overly-long sessions of the legislature and the salaries and perks of its members and staff
- Downsize executive departments, agencies, bureaus and commissions, cutting jobs and putting the fewer bureaucrats on less pay. We have too much State government in too many layers and we need to shrink it.
- Sell off State-run enterprises that could better be handled by private enterprises, such as the State-park concessions. Sell the State’s airplane fleet and the excessive number of its cars
- Repeal unfunded State mandates to local governments
- Make English the official language of State documents
- Eliminate public expenditures for anyone not a citizen of the United States, except in emergency and dire temporary situations
- Hold public colleges and universities strictly accountable for high standards before any more tuition increases
- Require legislative review of all State regulation at regular intervals with the goal of taking many of these burdens off business. Simplify the regulatory climate faced by entrepreneurs
- Support Second Amendment guarantees of the right to bear arms.
Summerville: 'I Can Feel the Ground Quaking' |
Summerville also says that he will work to strengthen "Tennessee right-to-life laws and for a more favorable environment for home schooling and charter schools."
He summarized his platform in this way: "In short, I favor a smaller and smarter State government. If you’re satisfied with the status quo, you’ll probably want to vote for the incumbent. If not, I would appreciate your consideration. I welcome dissident Democrats and new Tea Partier friends."
Elections
2014
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for 18 seats in the Tennessee State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 7, 2014. A general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 3, 2014. Tony Gross was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Kerry Roberts defeated incumbent Jim Summerville, Joshua Evans and Wayne White in the Republican primary. Roberts defeated Gross in the general election.[1][2]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Kerry Roberts |
70.4% | 29,337 | |
| Democratic | Tony Gross | 29.6% | 12,316 | |
| Total Votes | 41,653 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Kerry Roberts |
42.2% | 9,832 |
| Joshua G. Evans | 37.8% | 8,819 |
| Jim Summerville Incumbent | 15.9% | 3,701 |
| Wayne White | 4.2% | 968 |
| Total Votes | 23,320 | |
2010
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2010
Summerville defeated incumbent Democrat Doug Jackson in the general election on November 2, 2010. He was unopposed in the Republican primary election for state senate District 25.[3][4]
| Tennessee State Senate, District 25, General Election 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Jim Summerville (R)
|
21,375 | |||
| Doug Jackson (D) | 20,455 | |||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Tennessee scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2014
In 2014, the 108th Tennessee General Assembly, second year, was in session from January 14 to April 18.
- Tennessee Conservation Voters: 2014 Scorecard
- Legislators are scored on their votes related to conservation and environmental issues.
- Tennessee National Federation of Independent Business: 2013-2014 Voting Record
- Legislators are scored on their votes on small business issues.
- The American Conservative Union: 2014 Scorecard
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 108th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 8 to April 19.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 107th Tennessee General Assembly, second year, was in session from January 10 through May 1.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 107th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 11 to May 21.
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Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Summerville and his wife currently reside in McCreary Heights, Tennessee. He serves on the boards of the Dickson County Higher Education Foundation, the Dickson Kiwanis Club and the Dickson County Help Center. He has served as a fundraising volunteer at the Frank G. Clement Museum and the Dickson County Board of Education.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Jim + Summerville + Tennessee + Senate"
- All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
- Tennessee State Legislature
- Tennessee State Senate
- Tennessee State Senate Committees
- Tennessee Joint Committees
- Tennessee state legislative districts
External links
- Profile from Open States
- Jim Summerville on Facebook
- Jim Summerville on LinkedIn
- Biography of Jim Summerville on Project Vote Smart
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010
Footnotes
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "August 7, 2014 Election Results," accessed September 11, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "Petitions Filed for State Senate and State House of Representatives," accessed April 5, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "2010 Primary Election Official Results," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "2010 Tennessee General election results," accessed April 18, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Doug Jackson (D) |
Tennessee State Senate District 25 2011–2014 |
Succeeded by Kerry Roberts (R) |
