Mariah Phillips

Mariah Phillips (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Tennessee House of Representatives to represent District 37. She lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Phillips completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Mariah Phillips was born in Pittsburg, California. She earned a bachelor's degree from Middle Tennessee State University in 2012 and a master's degree from Lipscomb University in 2016. Phillips' career experience includes working as a retail store manager, teacher, and businesswoman.^[1]

Elections

2020

General election

General election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37

Incumbent Charlie Baum defeated Mariah Phillips in the general election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37 on November 3, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Charlie Baum (R)	58.1	17,372
	Mariah Phillips (D)	41.9	12,509

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 29,881
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37

Mariah Phillips advanced from the Democratic primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37 on August 6, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mariah Phillips	100.0	3,454

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,454
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37

Incumbent Charlie Baum advanced from the Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37 on August 6, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Charlie Baum	100.0	5,110

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 5,110
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Tennessee District 4

Incumbent Scott DesJarlais defeated Mariah Phillips and Michael Shupe in the general election for U.S. House Tennessee District 4 on November 6, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Scott DesJarlais (R)	63.4	147,323
	Mariah Phillips (D)	33.6	78,065
	Michael Shupe (Independent)	3.0	7,056
	Other/Write-in votes	0.0	7

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 232,451
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Tennessee District 4

Mariah Phillips defeated Christopher Hale and Steven Reynolds in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Tennessee District 4 on August 2, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Mariah Phillips	47.5	15,474
	Christopher Hale	34.7	11,309
	Steven Reynolds	17.8	5,788

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 32,571
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Tennessee District 4

Incumbent Scott DesJarlais defeated Jack Maddux in the Republican primary for U.S. House Tennessee District 4 on August 2, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Scott DesJarlais	70.0	61,994
	Jack Maddux	30.0	26,580

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 88,574
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

Mariah Phillips completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Phillips' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I'm an educator, businesswoman, and mom. For most of my life, I've worked two jobs to make ends meet, so I understand the challenges facing working families-healthcare, childcare, long commutes, and tight budgets.

As I travel around, I see people like me - People who work hard to put food on the table, who want to take care of their families when they are sick, and who want to raise their children to have a better life than their own. I come from a long line of strong women, who work hard every day to take care of their families and impact their communities. They taught me to put family first, live a life of integrity, and never let anyone else dictate your potential.

Now, as a mother myself, I encourage those same values in my own five children. As a teacher, I instill those values into my students, encouraging them to understand their value, to set goals, and to strive for the future. Finally, as an active community member, if I see a need that needs to be filled, I take that as a call to action to help other people see their dreams become reality.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Working Hard for Hard Working Families. We need to rebuild an economy that works for everyone. I plan to rebuild our economy by bringing good-paying jobs to the district, making sure the unemployment insurance we all pay into work, and ensuring safe working conditions so we can continue to provide for our families during this crisis. We need more high-paying jobs HERE so working families don't spend hours commuting each day. Rutherford County boasts an educated workforce and excellent public schools that attract new business. I'll stay focused on recruiting quality employers and jobs to our community.
Empowering Educators. Strong public schools create stronger communities. I will empower educators by ensuring students and teachers can safely return to the classroom, so our kids get the world-class education they deserve. As an educator, I believe teachers need a voice in the legislature and I'm ready to be that voice. Our schools are some of the best in Tennessee, and we must continue to support and improve them. I'll protect funding for public schools and make college more affordable. I will work to improve career and technical education so students can leave high school ready to start a good-paying career or pursue an advanced degree.
Have you Met Mariah? I believe that a representative should know your needs and know your priorities. I will put people first by focusing on real issues instead of partisan crusades. For too long our State Legislature has pursued a divisive agenda that leaves behind working families and harms our most vulnerable neighbors. The COVID-19 crisis has made this even clearer as families are struggling to make ends meet, navigating high unemployment, and facing economic uncertainty. As your representative for District 37, I will focus on the people's priorities: good-paying jobs, quality healthcare, and the best possible education for our children and workforce. I will reject hateful legislation that divides us at the expense of our neighbors.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

As a high school US Government Teacher, protecting public education is my number one priority. Teaching at an alternative school has put me on the front line of the school to prison pipeline which has led me fight for Criminal Justice reform. Expanding the electorate and ensuring more people have access to vote is important because all Tennesseans should recognize the value of their voice. As an advocate for those who can't advocate for themselves, equality and justice for all people is written into the tenant of everything that I do.

Right now, in the state of Tennessee, the legislators have been focused on special interests and harmful bills. I will make sure we are prioritizing the needs of working families.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

My mother is my biggest role model. She has always been the one to demonstrate leadership, confidence, and the ability to rise above anyone's expectation.

Outside of my mother, my heroes were those leaders of the civil rights era. John Lewis, in particular, was one that I admired above others. As a young man, he led marches, gave speeches, organized sit ins and stood up against overwhelming odds. Always, with the intent to do what is right. Then he turned toward changing the laws he so heroically fought against.

When teaching and studying the civil rights era, I always wondered if I would've had the strength and commitment to stand up to the injustices of the day. Now, with so much at stake, I am proud to be someone who is standing up for what is right!

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

The characteristics most important to an elected official are integrity and availability. Integrity because it is important that elected officials have values that they stand by, that they are honest and just. And availability because their role as a representative is to be present, the hear their stories and pass legislation to meet the needs of their constituents.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I spent a lot of time going to museums and historic places when I was young. My mother was always very political so I remember watching debates, speeches, and political contests. The earliest historical event I remember personally is when Geraldine Ferraro was nominated as the first female Vice-Presidential nominee in 1984. I was 8 years old. My mother, a strong Feminist, proudly wore her campaign pin and spoke with me and my sister about the significance of a female in that position. I barely remember Walter Mondale, but I will never forget Ferrero.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job was working as an office intern for an insurance company in high school. I spent my summer between junior and senior year in an office, filing applications and sending off mailings for potential business. My next few jobs were a video store, the hostess at a BBQ resturant, the building manager at my college student union, and then at 19, I began working at Starbucks Coffee, where I had a 24 year career in various roles. I also taught high school for several years - US Government and Personal Finance.

Every state besides Nebraska has two legislative chambers. What do you consider the most important differences between the legislative chambers in your state?

We have a house (2 year terms) and a senate (4 year terms). The roles are essentially the same for both chambers, however, the house members serve a much more localized community whereas the senate covers a wider spread of the population. This balance of power ensures that both local and statewide issues will be considered in legislation.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

Not necessarily, but it is helpful for elected official to have an understanding of the law. As a political science major in college and a Government teacher, I have had to not only study the law but teach it to others.

More important than a background in law is a knowledge of how the laws impact everyday people. I believe the best legislators are ones who are understand the power of a law and can anticipate unintended consequences, who know what working families face everyday.

What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?

Lack of access to affordable healthcare will be the biggest challenge in this next decade, as evidenced by this current pandemic. Those with health insurance are more likely to remove from Covid-19. Because the State Legislature stubbornly refuses to expand Medicaid, hospitals across the state have closed and many private practice doctors are struggling to make it. Working class families are left without and are more at risk for negative health consequences. We must expand Medicaid in our state and protect our working families.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and the state legislature?

Ideally, there would be appropriate checks and balances between the different branches of government. Right now, we have a super-majority, where all branches of government are led by one party. THIs provides no oversight or opportunity for any balanced government.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

I do, even across parties. There are many types of legislation that can be bi-partisan, in fact the best ones are. Legislation regarding voting access should not be partisan, considering everyone should work toward expanding the electorate.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Criteria-Driven Independent Commission Approach: Based on the approach taken in California, this reform would have district maps drawn by a commission selected in a manner to maximize citizen participation and independence from legislative pressure. That body would then draw those maps based on criteria set by statute.

Some of the criteria may be:
Contiguity
Consistency with natural and political boundaries (county lines, for example)

Compactness (low perimeter to area ratio or a similar measure)

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

The two I would most prefer to serve on are the Education committee and the Judiciary committee.

Is there a particular legislator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

Katie Porter serves as a US Representative in California's 45th congressional district since 2019. As a freshman Congresswoman, she is witty, intelligent, and asks great questions when examining an expert witness. She is an independent thinker.

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

In 2018, I ran for US Congress. Prior to that election, I had no interest in running for office. The decisiveness of our current political climate is precisely what caused me to run.

After that election concluded, I recognized how much work we needed to do in our state government. We have one of the most extremely partisan legislatures. So I decided that I would focus my attention on fixing the problems in my own state.

Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

Two weeks ago, a local pastor and community leader lost his 30 year old son to Covid-19. His son was a small business owner and didn't have health insurance. He waited too late to go to the hospital and died with 3 days of admission to a hospital.

There are many stories that I have heard - employees afraid to go to work, teachers and students who are afraid to go to school, businesses closing due to a damaged economy. In times like these, the fact that our leaders are not providing leadership is irresponsible.

Disregarding basic public safety measures, like masks, as political tools, is exactly why we need a change in leadership.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

External links

Suggest a link

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 22, 2020

[show]

Current members of the Tennessee House of Representatives

Leadership

Speaker of the House:Cameron Sexton

Majority Leader:William Lamberth

Minority Leader:Karen Camper

Representatives

District 1

John Crawford (R)

District 2

Bud Hulsey (R)

District 3

Timothy Hill (R)

District 4

Renea Jones (R)

District 5

David Hawk (R)

District 6

Tim Hicks (R)

District 7

Rebecca Alexander (R)

District 8

Jerome Moon (R)

District 9

Gary Hicks (R)

District 10

Rick Eldridge (R)

District 11

Jeremy Faison (R)

District 12

Fred Atchley (R)

District 13

Robert Stevens (R)

District 14

Jason Zachary (R)

District 15

Sam McKenzie (D)

District 16

Michele Carringer (R)

District 17

Andrew Farmer (R)

District 18

Elaine Davis (R)

District 19

Dave Wright (R)

District 20

Tom Stinnett (R)

District 21

Lowell Russell (R)

District 22

Dan Howell (R)

District 23

Mark Cochran (R)

District 24

Kevin Raper (R)

District 25

Cameron Sexton (R)

District 26

Greg Martin (R)

District 27

Michele Reneau (R)

District 28

Yusuf Hakeem (D)

District 29

Greg Vital (R)

District 30

Esther Helton (R)

District 31

Ron Travis (R)

District 32

Monty Fritts (R)

District 33

Richard Scarbrough (R)

District 34

Tim Rudd (R)

District 35

William Slater (R)

District 36

Dennis Powers (R)

District 37

Charlie Baum (R)

District 38

Kelly Keisling (R)

District 39

Iris Rudder (R)

District 40

Michael Hale (R)

District 41

Ed Butler (R)

District 42

Ryan Williams (R)

District 43

Paul Sherrell (R)

District 44

William Lamberth (R)

District 45

Johnny Garrett (R)

District 46

Clark Boyd (R)

District 47

Rush Bricken (R)

District 48

Bryan Terry (R)

District 49

Mike Sparks (R)

District 50

Bo Mitchell (D)

District 51

Aftyn Behn (D)

District 52

Justin Jones (D)

District 53

Jason Powell (D)

District 54

Vincent Dixie (D)

District 55

John Clemmons (D)

District 56

Bob Freeman (D)

District 57

Susan Lynn (R)

District 58

Harold Love (D)

District 59

Caleb Hemmer (D)

District 60

Shaundelle Brooks (D)

District 61

Gino Bulso (R)

District 62

Pat Marsh (R)

District 63

Jake McCalmon (R)

District 64

Scott Cepicky (R)

District 65

Lee Reeves (R)

District 66

Sabi Kumar (R)

District 67

Ronnie Glynn (D)

District 68

Aron Maberry (R)

District 69

Jody Barrett (R)

District 70

Clay Doggett (R)

District 71

Kip Capley (R)

District 72

Kirk Haston (R)

District 73

Chris Todd (R)

District 74

Jay Reedy (R)

District 75

Jeff Burkhart (R)

District 76

Tandy Darby (R)

District 77

Rusty Grills (R)

District 78

Mary Littleton (R)

District 79

Brock Martin (R)

District 80

Johnny Shaw (D)

District 81

Debra Moody (R)

District 82

Chris Hurt (R)

District 83

Mark White (R)

District 84

Joe Towns (D)

District 85

Jesse Chism (D)

District 86

Justin Pearson (D)

District 87

Karen Camper (D)

District 88

Larry Miller (D)

District 89

Justin Lafferty (R)

District 90

Gloria Johnson (D)

District 91

Torrey Harris (D)

District 92

Todd Warner (R)

District 93

G.A. Hardaway (D)

District 94

Ron Gant (R)

District 95

Kevin Vaughan (R)

District 96

Gabby Salinas (D)

District 97

John Gillespie (R)

District 98

Antonio Parkinson (D)

District 99

Tom Leatherwood (R)

Republican Party (75)

Democratic Party (24)

[bio-1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 22, 2020

[1]

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Mariah Phillips

Contents

Biography

Elections

2020

General election

General election for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Tennessee House of Representatives District 37

2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Tennessee District 4

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Tennessee District 4

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Tennessee District 4

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

Trending

Public Policy

Information for candidates

Get Engaged

Services

Additional analysis

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