Tennessee -- Nashville election commission wants its own lawyer to respond to religious-discrimination suit
The Nashville City Paper reports: The Davidson County Election Commission is trying to shake itself of some city lawyers.
Davidson County Administrator of Elections Ray Barrett, requested a temporary restraining order against Metro Tuesday in federal court to force the Metro Legal Department to drop its attempt to intervene, on his behalf in the lawsuit that two Jewish voters filed against Metro earlier this month.
The voters are attempting to force a rescheduling of this year’s mayoral run-off vote from the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah, which falls this year on Sept. 13.
Reacting to the lawsuit, the Election Commission voted last week to reschedule the potential run-off to Sept. 11. The commission then hired local attorney Dewey Branstetter to see the rest of the lawsuit through.
But three days later, on April 19, the Metro Legal Department filed pleadings arguing that rescheduling the run-off could not legally happen because of a Metro Charter provision requiring a runoff election be held the second Thursday in September — Rosh Hashanah this year. -- City, Election Commission tussle over elections chief