U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper announces he will not seek re-election

U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper has announced he will not seek reelection in 2022.

Cooper has served as the Democratic Congressman representing Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District from 1983 to 1995 and its 5th Congressional District since 2003.

Cooper cited the state legislature's controversial move to split Davidson County into three congressional districts as one of the reasons for his decision to not seek reelection. His term in the U.S. Congress will end on Jan. 3, 2023.

Born in Nashville and raised in Shelbyville, Cooper is the son of former Tennessee Gov. Prentice Cooper, grandson of former Shelbyville mayor and Tennessee House Speaker William Prentice Cooper, and brother of Nashville Mayor John Cooper.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in history and economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master’s degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1980.