State Sen. Randy McNally (R-TN-05) was re-elected to a second term as Speaker of the Senate, and thus Lieutenant Governor, Tuesday.
State senators met at noon Tuesday, the first organizational day of the 111th General Assembly to elect their speaker, according to a press release from McNally’s office. By state statute, the Speaker of the Senate holds the title of Lieutenant Governor. McNally has served in the positions since January 2017.
Mark Norris, a federal judge in Memphis, swore in McNally as speaker and the members who were elected, WBIR reported. Norris was formerly the Senate Majority Leader until the U.S. Senate voted 51-44 in October to appoint him as a judge.
Gov.-elect Bill Lee tweeted, “Congratulations to @ltgovmcnally and @GlenCasada. I am honored to have the opportunity to work with both of you this session, and I look forward to what we can accomplish together to make this state an even better place for all Tennesseans.”
Congratulations to @ltgovmcnally and @GlenCasada. I am honored to have the opportunity to work with both of you this session, and I look forward to what we can accomplish together to make this state an even better place for all Tennesseans.
— Bill Lee (@BillLeeTN) January 8, 2019
“I do not take lightly the confidence you have placed in me,” McNally said in the press release. “To serve you as Speaker of the Senate has been a truly humbling experience. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the opportunity to continue in this role. It is my great privilege to represent Tennessee as Lieutenant Governor. I pray I will continue to be equal to the task.”
“In the past eight years, the promises made during the Republican road to the majority became promises kept while in office,” McNally said. “More Tennesseans have a job than ever before. We achieved AAA credit ratings from all three rating agencies. We became the most improved state in the nation in education. And we cut taxes 800 million dollars.”
“This success is not a matter of luck. It is the result of dedicated public servants making tough decisions with an eye toward the future,” McNally said. “We are all here to make Tennessee a better place. Let’s continue to believe in Tennessee together. Let’s get to work.”
McNally, of Oak Ridge, is only the second Republican Tennessee Senate Speaker in modern history and the first from Anderson County in nearly 150 years, his press release said.
He served as chairman of the Senate’s Finance, Ways and Means Committee for a decade. He served on the committee for 26 years.
McNally also served as chairman of the Senate Education Committee in the 102nd and 103rd General Assemblies.
He received a bachelor’s degree from Memphis State University in 1967 and graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy in 1969. He served as a hospital pharmacist at Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge from 1979 until his retirement in 2010.
McNally and his wife Janice have two adult daughters, Melissa and Maggie, three grandchildren, Haley, Morgan and Trent, and one great-grandchild, Malachi.
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Jason M. Reynolds has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist at outlets of all sizes.
Photo and Background Photo “Randy McNally” by Randy McNally.
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