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Ophelia Ford
Ophelia Ford is a former Democratic member of the Tennessee State Senate, representing District 29 from her special election win in 2005 to 2014.
Biography
Ford graduated with her bachelor's degree from Tennessee State University in 1972. She is an insurance agent and a certified funeral director.[1]
Ford had a number of serious health issues which forced her to be away from her Senate seat. She missed the first month of the 2010 session due to flu-like symptoms.[2] Ford also missed most of the 2007 session with what she referred to as "chronic anemia."[3]
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Ford served on the following committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Energy, Agriculture and Natural Resources |
| • Judiciary |
| • Transportation and Safety |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Ford served on these committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • General Welfare, Health & Human Resources |
| • Judiciary |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Ford served on these committees:
| Tennessee committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Government Operations |
| • General Welfare, Health & Human Resources |
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. Lee Harris defeated incumbent Ophelia Ford, Ricky Dixon and Herman Sawyer in the Democratic primary. James Finney defeated Anthony Herron, Jr. in the Republican primary. Harris defeated Finney in the general election.[4][5]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Lee Harris |
81.9% | 27,707 | |
| Republican | James R. "Jim" Finney | 18.1% | 6,123 | |
| Total Votes | 33,830 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Lee Harris |
42.5% | 10,517 |
| Ricky Dixon | 27.8% | 6,882 |
| Ophelia Ford | 27.3% | 6,756 |
| Herman Sawyer | 2.5% | 611 |
| Total Votes | 24,766 | |
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Jim Finney |
82% | 3,111 |
| Anthony Herron, Jr. | 18% | 682 |
| Total Votes | 3,793 | |
2010
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2010
Ford was re-elected to the 29th District seat in 2010. She defeated Republican Robert Hill and Independent Herman Sawyer in the general election on November 2, 2010.[6]
| Tennessee State Senate, District 29, General Election 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Ophelia Ford (D)
|
18,234 | |||
| Robert Hill (D) | 7,657 | |||
| Herman L. Sawyer (I) | 2,946 | |||
2006
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2006
On November 7, 2006, Ford won election to the 29th District Seat in the Tennessee State Senate, defeating opponent Terry Roland (R).[7]
Ford raised $58,990 for her campaign while Roland raised $69,953.[8]
| Tennessee State Senate, District 29 (2006) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Ophelia Ford (D)
|
29,965 | |||
| Terry Roland (R) | 11,438 | |||
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]. |
|---|
|
In 2013, the 108th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 8 to April 19.
|
2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2012, the 107th Tennessee General Assembly, second year, was in session from January 10 through May 1.
|
2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2011, the 107th Tennessee General Assembly, first year, was in session from January 11 to May 21.
|
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Ford has one child and three grandchildren.[1]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Ophelia + Ford + Tennessee + Senate"
See also
- Tennessee State Legislature
- Tennessee State Senate
- Tennessee State Senate Committees
- Tennessee Joint Committees
- Tennessee state legislative districts
External links
- Biography from the Tennessee General Assembly website (Archived)
- Profile from Open States
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006
- Voting record from Tennessee Votes.org
- Ophelia Ford on Facebook
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Project Vote Smart, "Ophelia Ford's Biography," accessed November 14, 2014
- ↑ Memphis Daily News, "Sen. Ophelia Ford Returns to Tennessee Session," February 18, 2010
- ↑ The Commercial Appeal, "'Severe medical issues' to keep Ophelia Ford away from legislative session," February 4, 2010
- ↑ 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 Tennessee General election results," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "2006 Tennessee General election results," accessed April 18, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "General Election Results," accessed April 18, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Ford |
Tennessee State Senate District 29 2005-2014 |
Succeeded by Lee Harris (D) |
