John Tanner

From SuperDelegates.org

Source: Wikipedia

[edit] Background

John S. Tanner (b. September 22, 1944) is a politician from the state of Tennessee. He represents the state's Eighth Congressional District in the House of Representatives, based in northwest Tennessee.

Tanner was born in Halls, Tennessee, and grew up in Union City, Tennessee. Following graduation from the University of Tennessee, he served in the United States Navy from 1968 to 1972. He was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1976, replacing Larry Bates, who mounted an unsuccessful primary challenge against Congressman Ed Jones. When Jones retired in 1988, Tanner won the Democratic nomination for the seat and handily defeated Republican nominee Ed Bryant, who went on to represent the neighboring 7th District from 1995 to 2003.

Tanner was reelected in 1990 with no major-party opposition, a feat he repeated in 1992. In 1998, he was completely unopposed. He handily defeated Republican opponents in 1994 (the only time besides his initial election that he faced a serious or well-funded Republican), 1996, 2000, 2002 and 2004. His 2004 opponent, James L. Hart, was an avowed eugenicist and, although running as a Republican, was disavowed by the state Republican Party.