I hope you will join me in welcoming Rupa Blackwell as the new Democratic Committeewoman for the 16th State Senatorial District, which includes Franklin County.
Rupa was elected by the TNDP executive committee to fill the vacancy created when Sheila Younglove stepped down (after being elected in August).
Rupa is a former Alderman for Tullahoma (2019-2022) as well as previous secretary of the Coffee County Democratic Party and a longtime Democratic activist.
She brings a lot of enthusiasm and experience and we look forward to working with her.
What is a Democratic Committeewoman? TNDP (the state party) forms its executive committee from two representatives from each of Tennessee’s 33 state senate districts. One is the Democratic Committeewoman and the other is the Democratic Committeeman, who is currently Bobby Bush (probably several of you have met him at FCDP events).
These are elected positions. This year they were on the August ballot. They serve for 4 years. However, it is my understanding that because Rupa was appointed, that position will be up for election again in 2024, the next regular election cycle.
These people help manage the affairs and decisions of TNDP much the same way that our elected district reps do for FCDP.
I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Betty Fraley, from Winchester, who served in some capacity in TNDP for over 30 years. She stepped down from the Democratic Committeewoman position this year. We are lucky to have such a dedicated Democratic activist right here in Franklin County and she continues to support TNDP.
Franklin County (TN) Democratic Party 