Nashville, Tennessee: Supreme Court Orders Metro Council Cut From 40 Members to 20

Nashville must cut its Metro Council from 40 members to 20, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled on Monday, Nov. 2. The unanimous ruling ends a legal fight that ran for three and a half years over how far the legislature can reach into how Nashville governs itself.

What the court decided

The court rejected the city's main argument, which rested on the Exemption Clause of the Tennessee Constitution. Metro argued that the clause exempts counties with consolidated governments from a cap on council size. The justices said the clause applies only to restrictions written into the constitution itself, and it does not stop the legislature from imposing other requirements, such as a 20 member cap, the Nashville Banner reported.

Metro also argued that the legislature unfairly singled out Nashville and Davidson County, in violation of the Home Rule provisions of the state constitution. The state answered that the 2023 law applies equally to all 347 municipal bodies in Tennessee. Nashville and Davidson County form one of the state's three metropolitan governments, and it is the only one with a legislative body of more than 20 members.

The court set no timeline for the cut and sent the case back to the trial court, the Banner reported. Metro had won early in the case and held injunctions that blocked the law in 2023 and 2024. It lost in 2025, when a Tennessee Court of Appeals panel said the law was constitutional, The Tennessean reported.

Reaction in Nashville and at the Capitol

Mayor Freddie O'Connell said the city will keep fighting. "Nashville's council size was set by our community, and our charter should only be changed by our voters, not by the state legislature," O'Connell said in a statement. "We'll review our options and keep fighting for Nashville's right to govern itself."

State Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, who sponsored the bill and leads the House majority, called the decision a "big win for small government and common sense" in a social media post.

Vice Mayor Angie Henderson, who presides over the council, called the ruling a "somber day for democracy in Tennessee." District 6 council member Clay Capp, who chairs the charter revision committee, will call a special committee meeting next week, with the whole council invited, to discuss the ruling.

What changes for Nashville residents

The Metro Council has had 40 members, 35 from districts and five at large, since Metro government was formed in 1963. It is the only Tennessee council with more than 20 members and the third largest in the nation, behind New York and Chicago, The Tennessean reported. District members now represent about 20,000 constituents each on average. At 20 members, each will represent potentially more than double that, and the city must redraw its district map.

What happens next

The path from here is not settled. Amendments to the Metro Charter require voter approval, and it is too late to place a change on Tuesday's ballot. The next scheduled election where voters could consider one is the 2027 election, when the Metro Council is on the ballot. The 2023 law, though, allows Metro to make the changes by a simple majority vote of the council itself, the Banner reported. On Sept. 4, O'Connell said it would be tough to get a charter amendment on the ballot in time for the 2027 elections. The Tennessean reported that the next council election is Aug. 5.