There are 16 article(s) tagged Jana Swearengen-Washington:

• November 2026

  • Lawsuit alleges City Council chair engaged in illegal activity

    The suit says Jana Swearengen-Washington fired Hyman after she refused to use taxpayer money for the chairwoman’s personal requests.

    By Samuel Hardiman November 02, 2026

• October 2026

  • Turning Memphis red dominates Trump’s Clarksville stop

    Also in the political roundup, Tennessee’s GOP chairman talks about midterm trends, Justin J. Pearson’s ban letter goes public before he gets a copy and breaking ground for the new OUTMemphis center comes with culture war impact.

    By Bill Dries October 26, 2026

  • Data center moratorium returns to City Council with new security measures

    Five ordinances and a resolution — all on data centers — top the Tuesday council agenda including a call for a moratorium on new data centers.

    By Bill Dries October 20, 2026

  • Yolanda Cooper-Sutton suspended from City Council committee duties

    Memphis City Council Chairwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington suspended Council member Yolanda Cooper-Sutton from her committee-leadership duties for 30 days after her conduct during an Oct. 6 council meeting.

    By Mary Evans October 19, 2026

• September 2026

  • Data center moratorium proposals delayed until October

    A data center moratorium is losing steam as questions of the City Council’s authority to ban the developments mount.

    By Noah McLane September 15, 2026

  • Richardson charges are latest in recent string of allegations against elected officials

    Ten days into the new Shelby County Commission’s four-year term, two commissioners have been formally charged with crimes, while two other local officials are part of investigations.

    By Bill Dries September 11, 2026

• July 2026

  • Council confirms new city leaders

    The Memphis City Council also approved a change to the city’s structure for the trustee status MATA is currently operating under.

    By Bill Dries July 21, 2026

  • Council member said he’s not subject of ethics investigation

    Memphis City Council member JB Smiley Jr. is named in a May letter as urging the city administration to hire Chairwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington’s niece in the city’s IT division.

    By Bill Dries, Samuel Hardiman July 16, 2026

  • Council chair allegedly pushed staff for donations

    In May, the City Council’s chief administrator raised various concerns about Chairwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington. Among them, that the councilperson was using city resources for her and her husband’s church.

    By Samuel Hardiman, Bill Dries July 15, 2026

• May 2026

  • Memphis council chair warned her behavior could violate city charter

    Memphis City Council Chairwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington has been accused of using her position to benefit her niece, who worked in the city’s IT department.

    By Samuel Hardiman May 29, 2026

• April 2026

  • City Council goes behind closed doors to talk MPD’s No Kings response

    Council member Jerri Green said she wasn’t told why the items were removed from discussion but said an outside investigation of MPD may be needed.

    By Bill Dries, Aarron Fleming April 28, 2026

• April 2024

  • Council member and DA host joint career and record-expungement fair

    Organizations ranging from FedEx, MATA, Maximus Child Support and the Memphis Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Center were in attendance to promote work opportunities. 

    By Kambui Bomani April 20, 2024

• September 2023

  • Two candidates vie for District 4 council seat that each sees as their own

    One is a current City Councilwoman, and the other served on the council briefly. 

    By Samuel Hardiman September 10, 2023

• June 2023

  • Drake gets key to Shelby County

    While visiting the Bluff City, the “Rich Flex” rapper was honored with a key to Shelby County by Commissioner Mickell Lowery.

    By Jada Ojii June 27, 2023

• December 2022

  • Swearengen-Washington joins Memphis City Council

    The council renews discussions Tuesday on a damage deposit agreement for the Memphis In May International Festival’s use of Tom Lee Park as well as a tourism surcharge for the Downtown Memphis Sheraton Hotel.

    By Bill Dries December 05, 2022

• November 2022

  • Jana Swearengen-Washington wins District 4 City Council seat, replaces sister

    For the second time since August, the Memphis City Council District 4 seat has a new representative.

    By Aarron Fleming November 08, 2022