Charlotte Gentry Burks (born October 3, 1942) is a

farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer m ...

and

Democratic party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

who represented the 15th district as State Senator from 1998 until 2015. Burks was born in 1942 in

Gainesboro, Tennessee Gainesboro is a town in Jackson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 920 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Jackson County. Gainesboro is part of the Cookeville, Tennessee Micropolitan Statistical Area. History T ...

, and lives in

Monterey, Tennessee Monterey is a town in Putnam County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,850 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Cookeville, Tennessee Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Monterey is rooted in a settlement that developed around ...

. She was married to

Tommy Burks Fred Thomas Burks (May 22, 1940 – October 19, 1998) was a farmer and Democratic Party politician in Tennessee, United States. He served in the Tennessee House of Representatives from 1970 until 1978, and in the Tennessee State Senate from ...

, a Tennessee State Senator. They had three children together, one of whom is former Putnam County Executive Kim Blaylock. She also has 11 grandchildren.Senator Charlotte Burks - District 15
Tennessee General Assembly website, accessed May 15, 2011

Career

In 1998, after Burks' husband was assassinated during an election campaign by his

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

challenger Byron (Low-Tax) Looper, she became a

write-in candidate A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be poss ...

for his seat. Although she did not campaign, family members and friends campaigned extensively on her behalf, and she defeated Looper by a landslide margin, receiving 95% of the vote and becoming the first write-in candidate to win a seat in the

Tennessee State Senate The Tennessee Senate is the upper house of the U.S. state of Tennessee's state legislature, which is known formally as the Tennessee General Assembly. The Tennessee Senate has the power to pass resolutions concerning essentially any issue rega ...

. She began her Senate service with the 101st General Assembly. Burks was reelected in 2002 and 2006 with no substantive opposition. In 2010, when Republicans picked up many seats in the General Assembly, Burks won re-election to a fourth four-year term by a margin of just 183 votes over her Republican opponent, Gary Steakley.Mary Jo Denton
Burks re-elected to senate seat
''Herald-Citizen'' (Cookeville, Tennessee), November 2010. Accessed May 15, 2011. Burks carried five of the six counties in the largely rural district, losing only in

Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to: Australia * Cumberland County, New South Wales * the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia Canada *Cumberland County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom * Cumberland, historic county *Cumberla ...

. An independent candidate placed third in the vote. Steakley challenged the results, claiming irregularities on election day, but a State Senate committee found that there was insufficient evidence to question the outcome.Liz Engel Clark
Election contest bends in Burks' favor
Herald Citizen (Cookeville, Tennessee), May 1, 2011 In the Senate, Burks served as the secretary of the

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

committee; as a member of the joint study economic development; government operations; select on children and youth; and the environment,

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

, and

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

committees. On September 8, 2013 she announced her retirement and that she would not run for reelection to the State Senate in 2014. On Election Day, the Republican candidate won the seat.

References

External links

Senator Charlotte Burks - District 15
''official State Senate website''
Senator Charlotte Burks
''official campaign website''
Project Vote Smart - Charlotte Burks (TN)
profile *''Follow the Money'' - Charlotte Burks
20082006200420021998
campaign contributions
Official website of the town of Gainesboro, Tennessee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burks, Charlotte 1942 births Living people People from Gainesboro, Tennessee Democratic Party Tennessee state senators People from Putnam County, Tennessee Women state legislators in Tennessee 21st-century American women