Gallatin mayor signals plan to run for 4th term despite term limit dispute
"Vote at Your Own Risk": Attorney Warns Brown Could Still Be Removed if Court Sides With Voters on Appeal
Mayor Paige Brown picked up her candidate petition for a fourth term on Tuesday, July 28, according to Sumner County Election Commission records. For FOHL members who have followed the term-limits fight since March, this will come as no surprise, but it does raise the stakes for every Gallatin voter heading into November. She has not yet turned it in to qualify as of this writing.
A Reminder of Where This Stands
Gallatin voters overwhelmingly approved a 2018 charter amendment limiting the mayor and aldermen to three consecutive four-year terms. Ten residents sued in March, arguing the charter's language plainly barred a fourth Brown term. In June, a Sumner County Chancery Court judge disagreed, ruling Brown was eligible to run again based on how the amendment is worded.
That ruling is now on appeal, and it is not final.
"Vote at Your Own Risk"
Attorney Tom Lee, who represents the residents challenging Brown's eligibility, told WKRN the mayor's move to qualify was expected. He also had a pointed message for anyone planning to cast a ballot in this race: he said residents should vote at their own risk, warning that Tennessee has precedent for courts ordering officials removed from office after the fact when term limits were later found to have been violated.
In other words: even if Brown appears on the ballot and wins, the legal question of whether she was ever eligible to run isn't settled. Lee's group intends to pursue the appeal to a conclusion, and a reversal further down the road is squarely on the table.
Why This Matters for Friends of Old Hickory Lake
We've said it before and we'll say it again: the leaders elected this November will shape decisions on development, zoning, traffic congestion, school overcrowding, and the long-term health of Old Hickory Lake for the next four years or, depending on how the appeal plays out, for considerably less than that. An election clouded by an unresolved eligibility dispute is not the stable footing our city needs heading into a pivotal term.
FOHL will continue tracking this case as it moves through the Court of Appeals. In the meantime, we encourage every member to stay informed.
Contact your Mayor and City Council here