Roy Herron

Roy Herron, former state lawmaker and chair of the Tennessee Democratic Pary, died at the age of 69 on July 9, 2023, in Nashville from injuries sustained in a jetski accident on Kentucky Lake. A native of Dresden, Herron earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin then a joint masters’ of divinity and law degree from Vanderbilt University. He served a total of 26 years in the General Assembly, ten years in the House of Representatives beginning in 1986 and then 16 years in the State Senate where he served as chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus. He served two years as the Tennessee Democratic Party executive committee chairman beginning in 2013.