Tennessee House District 8

PERK UP

WITH PERKINS

Support in Fighting for Veterans, Women, and Labor Rights

WHO IS LEONARD PERKINS?

Leonard Perkins is a champion for veterans' human rights, women's reproductive autonomy, and organized labor.

He is a retired USAF Air traffic controller as well as a retired employee from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Leonard is a substance abuse counselor & Pastor/Founder of Patmos Island Community Church for 25 years.

In 2015: He founded the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 1113.

In 2019: He founded the All Veterans Golfplex and Adaptive Sports Center. This is a 46-acre therapeutic facility dedicated to making veterans and their families whole again. It consists of a 9-hole golf course, an 18-hole disc golf course, and a tennis court. On-site, there is also a Medical doctor, a licensed RN, and two licensed social workers, as well as four horses for Equine Therapy.

Leonard volunteers his time as a Chaplain for Baptist Trinity Hospice: Performing end-of-life services and military pinning, is a Clergy Ambassador for the Memphis Police Department, serves as a member of the Memphis Library Foundation Board, is a member of the Memphis Baptist Ministers Association, and is the current President of All American Veterans, Inc.. 

He holds a Bachelor of Science as well as a Masters of Divinity and was recently endorsed by the Teamsters.

Tennessee House District 80

My name is Andrea Bond Johnson.

I’m running to put people first so families here can afford life, count on healthcare, earn fair pay, and see real opportunity. I’ll work to lower everyday costs, build strong schools, grow small businesses, and expand training that leads to good jobs. With steady, honest leadership, I’ll listen, solve problems, and deliver.

OUR PRIORITIES

Fighting for Our Community

These are some of the top priorities our campaign is focused on.

Good jobs

Strong schools

Healthcare access

Lowering costs

     Councilwoman Jerri Green, a proud Memphian, was elected to the Memphis City Council on November 16, 2023. Having graduated from White Station High School, she pursued her higher education at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she earned her B.A. in English and Political Science. Continuing her academic journey, Jerri obtained her Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University School of Law in Washington, D.C.

     She is a licensed attorney in the state of Tennessee and a member of the Memphis Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association, the Association for Women Attorneys, and the American Inns of Court. She has practiced public interest law in areas ranging from international human rights to criminal defense, in Washington, D.C., Nashville, and Memphis. She also taught criminal law and juvenile justice for almost a decade through the University of Phoenix. She has worked at the University Memphis Law School and was the previous Executive Director of the Community Legal Center where she worked to advance the mission of bridging the justice gap in the Memphis community.

     Jerri currently serves as the Deputy Chief of Staff to Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris. In her most recent professional role, she served as the Senior Policy Advisor to Mayor Lee Harris where she worked on many issues, from Women’s Health and Public Safety to Refugee Assistance and Blight Remediation. Her accomplishments in this role include leading projects to insure over 70% of the local prison population was vaccinated at the height of COVID, finalizing the last group of Shelby County employees received a living wage, and establishing a first of its kind free gun lock by mail program.

     Councilwoman Green was named a Superwoman in Business by the Memphis Business Journal in 2023 and was selected as a fellow for the Aspen Institute’s Memphis Workforce Leadership Academy. She is the past President of the Democratic Women of Shelby County, a member of the Board of Directors for the Girls, Inc. and the Humane Society of Memphis and Shelby County and was the statewide election lead for the Tennessee Moms Demand Action Chapter.

     Councilwoman Green now serves as the Chairwoman of the Economic Development, Tourism, & Technology Committee and the Vice-Chair of the Transportation Committee. Additionally, she serves as the Council’s liaison for Memphis River Parks Partnership and the Urban Art Commission.

     Councilwoman Green takes immense pride in her role as a mother and wife. Patrick is her loving husband, and she is blessed to be the mother of Beau, Vivienne, and Wilder.

Memphis City Councilwoman, Jerri Green, is running for Tennessee governor: https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/local/2025/07/14/memphis-city-councilwoman-jerri-tennessee-governor/85191204007/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z115251p116450c116450e005400v115251b0045xxd004565&gca-ft=150&gca-ds=sophi 

     Not only in the Tennessee legislature but throughout her years as a community organizer, Aftyn has dedicated her life to holding government accountable and demanding transparency from those in power. She knows Tennesseans are tired of backroom deals and policies that rig the economy for the wealthy and well-connected while working families are left paying the price.

Aftyn believes good government should work for everyone, not just the elites. Whether she’s organizing to stop private equity from buying up generational Black family homes through her 2025 Homes, Not Hedge Funds bill, or advocating for fair funding for rural communities through her 2025 Rural Prosperity Act, Aftyn has consistently prioritized transparency and accountability for both urban and rural communities. She’s committed to building an economy that prioritizes workers, supports small businesses, and gives every Tennessean — no matter their zip code — a fair shot at an affordable life and a promising future.

Aftyn has a track record of winning —even in hostile territory. With deep roots in movement organizing and long-standing partnerships with attorneys, strategists, and community leaders, she has built a reputation for leveraging every available power lever—public pressure, legal strategy, legislative tactics, and coalition muscle—to effect change. After all, she had the highest total voter turnout of any Democratic State Representative in 2024.

In partnership with stakeholders and grassroots movements, she helped pass the federal RECOMPETE Act to rebuild small-town economies, forced the retirement of two Senators and four members of Congress while at Indivisible, and played a key role in the resignation of disgraced Speaker Glen Casada. In 2024, along with Senator Charlane Oliver, she made Tennessee’s grocery tax a top campaign issue, bringing long-overdue scrutiny to a regressive policy hurting working families. Her influence extends beyond state lines—Aftyn supported the successful ballot referendums in Ohio and Montana, helping to protect reproductive freedom where it was under attack. Her success lies in her ability to unite unlikely allies, build durable infrastructure, and never back down from a fight.

Aftyn currently serves on the steering committee for Healthy and Free TN, a statewide coalition working to decriminalize pregnancy and address the black maternal mortality crisis in Tennessee. She also serves on the steering committee for the Southern Connected Communities project, a grassroots group dedicated to identifying solutions for internet connectivity in underserved or unserved areas, with an emphasis on community input and ownership.

Aftyn served as the Campaign Director for RuralOrganizing, where she oversaw the organization's electoral strategy and execution, and shaped the political and policy landscape impacting small towns and rural communities. She worked for National Indivisible, helping to build national programs, including one of the country’s largest rural organizing programs, and supported grassroots organizing efforts in Kentucky and Tennessee. She first cut her teeth fighting for healthcare access at the Tennessee Justice Center during the national Medicaid and Affordable Care Act battles, when she organized across the 7th congressional district, raising awareness about rural hospital closures. Before that gig, she was a consultant for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva, Switzerland, developing community-based protection policies for refugees and displaced persons. 

Aftyn is from East Tennessee and holds a Master of Social Work with a policy specialization from the Steve Hicks School of Social Work at the University of Texas at Austin. In Congress, she’s carrying that same grit and guts — to fix what’s broken, stand up to corporate greed, and deliver fearless leadership that puts people first.

Aftyn Behn is a Democrat running for TN-07

Contact Kate Briefs for general info and press inquiries at team@aftynbehn.com