State Rep. Judd Matheny will return to the Tennessee House for an eighth term after rebuffing an upset bid by two Republican hopefuls Thursday night.
Matheny breezed to reelection over Tullahoma residents Will Lockhart and Steve Lynn. Since there is no Democratic candidate in the general election, Matheny will resume his office representing the 47th District with his win in the Republican Primary.
The district includes all of Coffee County and about one-third of Warren County.
Matheny waltzes back into office with a landslide win, defeating his nearest opponent, Lockhart, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin of 2,408 votes to 1,296. Lynn finished a distant third with 406 votes.
Matheny carried both Warren and Coffee counties. He more than doubled Lockhart in Warren County, besting him 556 to 240, while Lynn garnered 46 votes.
Matheny said he would like to focus on issues facing the state’s growing senior citizen population when the General Assembly returns to session next year.
“The senior citizen issue is one I believe we have woefully inadequate resources,” said Matheny. “From a medical standpoint, from a housing standpoint, and from a transportation standpoint, we have thousands and thousands of new seniors coming along and we’re unprepared for that as a state.”
Matheny also said he would like for the state to address transportation infrastructure issues and provide more broadband internet access to rural areas.
“Heroin and prescription drug abuse are two problem where I’d like to dedicate more law enforcement resources,” said Matheny.