Gov. Bill Lee has approved hiring Gilbert Dickey, a former associate White House counsel during the Trump administration, to represent state officials in a legal dispute over a mailing campaign that demanded proof of U.S. citizenship from voters. The campaign, which involved sending 14,375 letters, has been criticized as voter intimidation and potentially illegal, prompting the American Civil Liberties Union to threaten a lawsuit. Dickey, now a partner at Consovoy McCarthy, will be paid $450 per hour for his services, The Tennessean reports.

Citizens United and 16 state political parties — including the Tennessee Republican Party — on Thursday filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) accusing Vice President Kamala Harris of improperly assuming control of Biden campaign funds after he withdrew from the presidential race. The Tennessee Lookout reports that the complaint is asking the FEC’s six-person commission — split evenly between Democrats and Republicans — to “immediately initiate enforcement proceedings to prevent Harris from using her ill-gotten gains for her campaign in the little time remaining between now and the November general election.” A Harris campaign spokesperson said in a statement that the complaint had no merit; the FEC declined to comment.

A Tennessee Registry of Election Finance board member is criticizing the Attorney General’s Office over its investigation of two political groups, challenging the veracity of its report and raising questions about possible bias. According to the Tennessee Lookout, registry board member Tom Lawless says the attorney general’s office “did not do even a remotely close to thorough investigation. They just went through the motions.” He plans to call leaders from the Tennessee Constitutional Republicans and the Sumner County Constitutional Republicans to come before the board and explain how they are operating without registering with the state as political action committees. Lawless previously complained about the time it took the attorney general’s office to conduct the investigation.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee touted school choice and the unity of Republican governors during a speech Tuesday at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Lee has made school choice a priority for his administration and this week called it the “civil rights issue of our time.” Lee was the second Republican elected official from Tennessee to speak. On Monday, U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee spoke twice during the opening day of the convention: once to present the party platform and again to address delegates. The Tennessean has more, including Lee's full remarks.

Former Tennessee House Speaker Beth Harwell has settled a suit filed over campaign finances in her 2022 run for Congress. Tennessee Lookout reports that Harwell and the Government of the People PAC reached a settlement with the Federal Election Commission for a $16,000 civil penalty. The group alleged that Harwell violated campaign finance rules regarding soft money during her campaign for the 5th District congressional race. Harwell claimed at the time that a transfer of funds from her state political action committee to a super PAC that supported her bid was vetted by attorneys working for her campaign. According to the news source, because Harwell did not try to hide the transfer she was not charged for violating the law.

The Tennessee Democratic Party (TNDP) on Thursday announced the hiring of Brian Córdova as its new executive director. Córdova is joining the TNDP after almost a decade of working in Tennessee politics. He served as political director for the House and Senate Democratic Caucuses in 2022 and has worked on or consulted on races across Tennessee and around the country, including in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Hawaii. Clarksville Online has more.

A bipartisan group seeking to draw more moderate Tennessee Republican and Democrats into voting in state primary contests plans to roll out its first ad next week during the presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, Tennessee Journal reports. Organizers of the group — known as The Best of Tennessee — say that only about 22% of voters have participated in party primaries in recent years. According to Tennessee Lookout, the group was founded by Nashville lawyer Chloe Akers.

The chair of the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance, Hank Fincher, told the Tennessee Journal in a text message that the registry's referral of a collusion complaint to the state attorney general is "very serious." The complaint states the treasurer of the East Tennessee Conservatives PAC, which has published ads attacking incumbent Sen. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, is also the treasurer for U.S. Rep. Diane Harshbarger, a Kingsport Republican. The chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Diana Harshbarger said such referrals "happen all the time," but Fincher maintained that referrals reflect "probable cause" that violations occurred.

Harold Collins, chief administrative officer for Shelby County Government, has announced that he plans to run for Shelby County mayor in 2026. The Memphis Commercial Appeal reports that Collins was celebrating his recent graduation from Jackson State University with a master's degree in public policy “when he made the surprise announcement before supporters, family and friends.” Collins previously served as a Memphis city council member, deputy director of the Shelby County Division of Corrections and head of the Shelby County Office of Reentry. He ran unsuccessfully for Memphis mayor in 2015. Current Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris is ineligible for reelection.

Gov. Bill Lee announced today that he will back three state House candidates who are aligned with him on the issue of school vouchers, Tennessee Journal reports. The beneficiaries of his support are: Jason Emert in District 20 in Blount County, Lee Reeves in District 65 in Williamson County and Aron Maberry in District 68 in Montgomery County. The seats are being vacated respectively by Republican Reps. Bryan Richey of Maryville, Sam Whitson of Franklin and Curtis Johnson of Clarksville.