Lee A. Harris | |
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Minority Leader of the Tennessee Senate | |
Assumed office January 2015 |
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Preceded by | Jim Kyle |
Member of the Tennessee Senate from the 29 district |
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Assumed office January 2015 |
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Preceded by | Ophelia Ford |
Member of the Memphis City Council District 7 |
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In office 2011–2015 |
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Preceded by | Berlin F. Boyd (appointed) |
Succeeded by | Berlin F. Boyd (appointed) |
Personal details | |
Born |
Memphis, Tennessee |
August 10, 1978
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Alena Allen (m. 2005) |
Residence | Memphis, Tennessee |
Alma mater |
Morehouse College Yale Law School |
Profession | Professor |
Lee Ardrey Harris (born August 1978) is a candidate for Mayor of Shelby County, TN. Lee is also a law professor who currently serves as a member of the Tennessee Senate, representing Tennessee's 29th district. Prior to his election to the state senate, Harris served on the Memphis City Council, representing District 7. He was born and raised in Memphis, and studied at Morehouse College, followed by Yale Law School. In 2014, he was elected to the Tennessee Senate to replace Ophelia Ford. He was elected in November 2014 by the Democratic Senate Caucus of the Tennessee State Senate to the leadership position of Senate Minority Leader. He is the first black lawmaker of either party to hold a leadership position in the Tennessee State Senate.
Harris was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. He is the son of a retired high school guidance counselor and a heating and air conditioning repairman. He attended Memphis city schools, including Alcy Elementary School, John P. Freeman Middle School, and Overton High School. Harris attended Morehouse College on a full scholarship, graduating in 2000. While at Morehouse, Harris completed a one-year course of study at the London School of Economics. He graduated from Yale Law School in 2003.
Harris began his legal career as an associate at Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, a Memphis law firm. In 2003, Harris began teaching at the University of Memphis, School of Law, attaining tenure in 2009. Harris teaches and publishes in the fields of corporate law.