Justice Democrats jump into 2022 primaries with Tennessee House race endorsement

Justice Democrats, the progressive group that launched Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's historic 2018 campaign, made its first splash of the 2022 midterms on Monday by endorsing Nashville activist Odessa Kelly as she kicked off her Democratic primary challenge to longtime Tennessee Rep. Jim Cooper.

Kelly is the co-founder and executive director of Stand Up Nashville, a labor-aligned coalition of community groups. If she were to defeat Cooper -- a centrist first elected in 1982 and now in his 10th term since returning to the House in 2003 -- and win his seat, Kelly would become the first gay, Black woman to serve in Congress. "I've watched kids grow up in this city and felt their fear when we didn't know what would come next," Kelly said in a statement. "We need more pathways out of poverty, and the status quo is no longer good enough. I know how to build coalitions that get results, and I'm running for Congress so that we can make bold, ambitious change at the national level."