Rep. Justin Pearson, photographed at the Tennessee General Assembly in April 2023. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)

Justin J. Pearson, a Memphis state representative who rose to national prominence for his protest against gun violence, plans to challenge longtime U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen in the 2026 Democratic primary.

The Tennessee Lookout confirmed from multiple sources that Pearson will announce his campaign Wednesday. The campaign had not made a public announcement at the time of publication.

Pearson, 30, began his political career as a community organizer, working to oppose the construction of a Byhalia oil pipeline through a historically Black neighborhood in Memphis, and leveraged the work into a successful run for state House in a 2023 special election.

A month after his

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