Knoxville, TN- The Knox County Republican Party announced today that it has formally requested the Knox County District Attorney to pursue criminal charges against County Commissioner Courtney Durrett, citing alleged violations of Tennessee election law.

Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 2-7-115(b), participation in a political party’s primary is limited to voters who are bona fide members of that party or who intend to affiliate with that party. The Party asserts that this statute restricts participation in Republican primaries to Republican voters. The Party further states that encouraging individuals who do not meet these criteria to vote in a Republican primary constitutes solicitation of unlawful conduct.

According to information obtained by the Knox County Republican Party, Commissioner Durrett-an elected Democrat-voted in the ongoing Republican primary and has publicly encouraged other Democrats to do the same through social media posts. Democrats have been unable to find candidates to run in their own primaries, and this is an intentional effort by Democratic officeholders to influence the outcome of the Republican primary.

The Knox Republican Party alleges that Commissioner Durrett’s actions constitute multiple violations of Tennessee law, including:

• Unlawfully voting in a primary election. under Tenn Code Ann. § 2-71-115
• Unlawfully voting in an election, a felony under Tenn. Code Ann. 52-19-107
• Soliciting others to commit a crime, under Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-12-102

The Knox County Republican Party has submitted a formal letter to the Knox County District Attorney outlining these allegations and requesting prosecution.