Marquita Bradshaw

Bradshaw was born on January 12, 1974, in Memphis, grew up in South Memphis, and earned a high school diploma from Central High School and a bachelor's degree from the University of Memphis, a Bachelor of Liberal Studies in journalism and communication studies according to Wikipedia. Her parents helped organize residents around contamination at the Memphis Defense Depot Superfund site.[2][7][5] She is a volunteer project director for the Defense Depot Memphis, Tennessee - Concerned Citizens Committee, which raises awareness of contamination from the Memphis Defense Depot Superfund site.[7] She has worked as an organizer at local, state and national levels, including with the Mid-South Peace & Justice Center, Sierra Club, Stand for Children, Tennesseans for Fair Taxation, AFGE and the AFL-CIO.[7] Wikipedia reports that she chairs the environmental justice committee of the Sierra Club's Tennessee chapter.[5] In her 2026 Ballotpedia survey she says she has worked as a caretaker for a differently abled adult and experienced medical bankruptcy.[1]

Bradshaw won the 2020 Democratic Senate primary with 35.5% in a five-candidate field, becoming the first Black woman nominated for statewide office by a major party in Tennessee, according to Wikipedia. She then lost the general election to Bill Hagerty, about 35% to 62%.[2][8][5] She founded Sowing Justice after the 2020 race and serves as its executive director; she describes it as a nonpartisan organization focused on civic engagement beyond voting.[1][5] In 2024 she lost the Democratic Senate primary to Gloria Johnson, 21.8% to 70.2%, and on August 6, 2026 she won the Democratic primary with 54.7% of the vote over four opponents.[2][4] She received 42.9% of the vote to Bill Hagerty's 55.1%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[3]