Jerri Diane Mauldin Green is an American attorney, public servant, and political figure whose career has centered on defending the vulnerable, shaping local policy, and advocating for working families across Tennessee. Born in Germantown and raised in Memphis, she has lived and worked in all three grand divisions of the state, gaining a practical understanding of its diverse communities, challenges, and shared values.
As a mother of three, former juvenile public defender, nonprofit leader, senior advisor in county government, Memphis City Council member, and interim Chief Public Defender for Shelby County, Green has focused on public safety, living wages, healthcare access, education, and justice reform. In 2026 she secured the Democratic nomination for Governor of Tennessee, positioning herself as a candidate rooted in local experience rather than distant political machinery.
Jerri Green Early Life
Jerri Diane Mauldin was born on January 22, 1978, in Germantown, Tennessee, a suburb adjacent to Memphis in Shelby County. Her parents were Rudy A. Mauldin and Deborah Spivey Mauldin. When she was two years old her parents divorced, and she was raised primarily by her mother and stepfather, Deborah Spivey Mosley and George P. Mosley, in the Hickory Hill neighborhood of Memphis. This working class and middle class area of the city shaped her early view of community responsibility and the everyday struggles many families face.
Tennessee’s largest city and its surrounding county form the heart of West Tennessee, one of the state’s three grand divisions. Memphis sits on the Mississippi River and has long served as a major commercial, cultural, and transportation hub for the Mid South. Shelby County is the most populous county in Tennessee and contains a wide range of neighborhoods, from historic districts to suburban developments and areas dealing with poverty and underinvestment. Growing up in this environment gave Green direct exposure to both the opportunities and the inequities that define much of urban Tennessee life.
She attended White Station High School, one of Memphis’s well regarded public high schools known for academic rigor and diverse student body. After graduation she enrolled at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, located in East Tennessee. There she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Political Science, completing the program in seven semesters and graduating in 1999. The combination of literary study and political science provided a foundation in clear communication and an understanding of government institutions that would prove useful throughout her later work.
Following undergraduate studies she moved to Washington, D.C., to attend Georgetown University Law Center. She received her Juris Doctor in 2003. Her legal education emphasized public interest law, criminal defense, and the constitutional protections available to those without means. This period outside Tennessee broadened her perspective while reinforcing her commitment to return home and apply her skills where she felt they were most needed.
Green’s early years therefore span West Tennessee roots, East Tennessee higher education, and national legal training. This geographic range later became a point she emphasized when describing her ability to represent the entire state.
Jerri Green Career
Green’s professional path has remained centered on public defense, legal aid, policy development, and elected office, always with a focus on people who lack resources or political influence.
Public Defense and Legal Practice
After graduating from Georgetown, Green began her career as a juvenile public defender with the Metropolitan Public Defender’s Office in Nashville, the capital of Tennessee located in Middle Tennessee. Working with young people in the justice system exposed her to the intersections of poverty, mental health, family instability, and the criminal legal process. She later continued public defense work in Memphis after relocating to be closer to her husband, who had taken a position with FedEx.
She practiced criminal defense in general sessions and state courts and also handled international human rights matters earlier in her career. From approximately 2009 to 2010 she served in the Shelby County Public Defender’s Office. These years grounded her belief that every person deserves zealous and ethical representation regardless of ability to pay.
In private practice she worked with firms including the Wagerman Law Firm and the Mauldin Law Firm. She also taught criminal law and juvenile justice for nearly a decade as a certified advanced facilitator with the University of Phoenix and later served as a public interest counselor at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.
Nonprofit Leadership
Green later joined the Community Legal Center in Memphis, eventually serving as Director of Community Engagement and then Interim Executive Director. The organization provides civil legal services to low income residents who cannot afford private counsel. Under her leadership the center worked to close the justice gap by assisting people with housing, family, and other civil matters that often determine whether families remain stable. This role deepened her understanding of how civil and criminal legal problems compound one another for vulnerable households.
County Government Service
In 2021 Green joined the administration of Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, first as a policy advisor and assistant county attorney, then as Senior Policy Advisor, and later as Deputy Chief of Staff. In these positions she worked on public safety, women’s health, living wages, refugee assistance, and blight remediation. Concrete results included leading efforts that achieved vaccination rates above 70 percent among the local jail population during the height of the COVID 19 pandemic, securing a living wage for the remaining groups of Shelby County employees, and establishing Tennessee’s first free gun lock by mail program operated by a local government. That program contributed to a measurable reduction in guns stolen from vehicles and related violent crime.
She also supported initiatives to reduce the use of solitary confinement, improve employment opportunities for justice involved residents, and expand maternal health services through funding for Black midwife fellows. These projects reflected a preference for practical, measurable interventions rather than purely symbolic statements.
Memphis City Council
In November 2023 Green won a runoff election for Memphis City Council District 2 by a narrow margin of 56 votes. She assumed office on January 1, 2024, becoming the first Democrat to hold the seat and contributing to the first female majority on the council. District 2 covers parts of East Memphis and surrounding areas that include both established neighborhoods and commercial corridors.
As a council member she has focused on funding for first responders, legislation addressing neglectful landlords, expansion of pre K and youth programming, mental health supports for young people, and measures to reduce gun violence. She has supported free bus passes during periods of economic hardship, ticket amnesty programs to recover unpaid fines, and improved budget transparency from local utilities and transportation agencies. She has also advocated for accessibility improvements, including nursing rooms in public buildings and training for law enforcement on interactions with individuals who have disabilities such as autism.
Green has chaired the Economic Development, Tourism, and Technology Committee and served as vice chair of the Transportation Committee. She acts as council liaison to the Memphis River Parks Partnership and the Urban Art Commission.
Chief Public Defender Role
In January 2026 Mayor Lee Harris appointed Green as Interim Chief Public Defender for Shelby County. The office is one of the oldest urban public defender offices in the United States and handles more than 22,000 cases annually. Returning to the agency where she had worked earlier in her career, she emphasized constitutional rights, ethical representation, and efforts to reduce recidivism through practical supports such as job placement. The appointment placed her at the head of a large, high volume office while she continued to serve on the City Council and pursue statewide office.
2020 State House Campaign and 2026 Gubernatorial Race
Green first sought elected office in 2020, challenging Republican incumbent Mark White in Tennessee House District 83. She received 46 percent of the vote in a suburban district that typically leans Republican, a competitive showing that raised her profile. She branded herself “One Tough Mother,” a phrase that has remained part of her public identity.
In 2025 she entered the race for Governor of Tennessee. On August 6, 2026, she won the Democratic primary, becoming the party’s nominee and the first woman nominated by Tennessee Democrats for the office. She advanced to the November 3, 2026 general election. Throughout the campaign she stressed affordability, fully funded public schools, healthcare access, public safety rooted in prevention as well as enforcement, and protection of fundamental freedoms. She has pointed to her experience living in Memphis, Knoxville, and Nashville and working in the judicial, legislative, and executive branches as preparation for statewide leadership.
Jerri Green State of Origin and Tennessee Roots
Tennessee is divided into three grand divisions with distinct histories, economies, and cultures. West Tennessee, anchored by Memphis and Shelby County, is shaped by the Mississippi River, agriculture, logistics, and a significant African American cultural heritage. Middle Tennessee centers on Nashville and features music, healthcare, higher education, and growing technology and corporate sectors. East Tennessee, with Knoxville and the Appalachian foothills, has strong manufacturing, tourism, and university influences along with a more conservative political tradition in many rural counties.
Green’s biography uniquely tracks this geography. She was born and raised in the Memphis area of West Tennessee, educated at the University of Tennessee in East Tennessee, and began her legal career as a public defender in Nashville in Middle Tennessee before returning to Memphis. She has repeatedly noted that few candidates for statewide office can claim to have lived and worked in all three divisions. This lived experience informs her emphasis on policies that address both urban and rural needs, from public education funding to healthcare access in areas where hospitals and specialists are scarce.
Shelby County itself contains roughly one fifth of Tennessee’s population and generates a substantial share of the state’s economic activity through the Port of Memphis, FedEx headquarters, medical institutions, and cultural attractions. At the same time it faces persistent challenges in poverty rates, violent crime in certain neighborhoods, and disparities in educational outcomes. Green’s career has been spent largely addressing these local realities while arguing that solutions developed in Memphis and Shelby County can inform statewide approaches.
Jerri Green Personal Life
Green is married to Patrick David Green, a former offensive lineman for the Vanderbilt Commodores who works at FedEx Express. The couple has three children: Beau, Vivienne, and Wilder. As of recent public statements the children were approximately ages 15, 14, and 8. Green has spoken openly about her youngest child having special needs and about the importance of fully funded public schools and special education programs. She has also described her family as the central motivation for her public work, stating that her special interests are her three children.
She identifies as a three time survivor of gun violence through the loss of people close to her. This personal experience contributed to her involvement with Moms Demand Action, where she served as statewide election lead for the Tennessee chapter. She has described the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting as a catalyst that moved her from private concern into organized advocacy and eventually into electoral politics.
Outside of formal roles Green has held board positions with Habitat for Humanity of Memphis, Girls Inc. of Memphis, the Humane Society of Memphis and Shelby County, and the Overton Shell. She previously served as President of the Democratic Women of Shelby County. These community commitments reflect a consistent pattern of engagement with organizations that support housing, youth development, animal welfare, and civic participation.
Green is a licensed attorney in Tennessee and a member of the Memphis Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association, Association for Women Attorneys, and American Inns of Court. She describes herself as a Christian and a lifelong Tennessean who values hard work, preparation, and showing up for people in difficult circumstances.
Jerri Green Awards and Recognition
In 2023 the Memphis Business Journal named Green a Superwoman in Business in recognition of her professional accomplishments and community impact. She was selected as a fellow for the Aspen Institute’s Memphis Workforce Leadership Academy, a program focused on developing leaders who can address regional economic and workforce challenges.
The Tennessee Senate passed a resolution in 2023 honoring her during Women’s History Month, citing her work as senior policy advisor on women’s health, public safety, living wages, refugee assistance, and the free gun lock program. These formal recognitions sit alongside the practical results she has achieved in county and city government.
Jerri Green Community Involvement and Advocacy
Beyond elected and appointed positions, Green has maintained steady involvement in civic organizations. Her leadership of the Democratic Women of Shelby County and her statewide role with Moms Demand Action illustrate a willingness to organize at both local and statewide levels. Board service with Habitat for Humanity, Girls Inc., the Humane Society, and cultural institutions such as the Overton Shell shows engagement across housing, youth empowerment, animal welfare, and the arts.
Her work on refugee assistance for Afghan families settling in Shelby County after military service, support for LGBTQ housing initiatives, and efforts to improve accessibility for people with disabilities further demonstrate a broad definition of community. She has consistently framed these efforts as extensions of the same principle that guided her public defense work: every person deserves dignity and a fair chance.
Jerri Green Approach to Public Policy
Green’s policy record emphasizes concrete outcomes over abstract ideology. In public safety she has supported increased funding and benefits for first responders, expanded mental health resources, job access for people leaving incarceration, and practical tools such as free gun locks that reduce theft and subsequent crime. In healthcare she has advanced free at home HIV testing kits, maternal health programs focused on Black midwives, and IVF benefits for county employees. On wages and affordability she has pushed living wage policies for public employees, free transit during economic hardship, and assistance programs for utilities, housing, and food.
Education and youth remain central. She has advocated for expanded pre K, youth mental health supports, arts and mentoring programs, and adequate funding for public schools, especially special education. Environmental concerns appear in her support for greywater reuse, community input on data center zoning, and neighborhood cleanup efforts. Across these areas she presents herself as pragmatic, focused on what families experience at their kitchen tables rather than on national political theater.
Conclusion
Jerri Diane Mauldin Green’s life traces a clear path from a Memphis childhood through rigorous education and into decades of service as a defender, advocate, policy maker, and elected official. Her work in Nashville, Memphis, and Shelby County government has produced measurable improvements in wages, public health, crime prevention, and access to justice. As Memphis City Council member for District 2 and interim Chief Public Defender, and as the 2026 Democratic nominee for Governor of Tennessee, she continues to argue that effective leadership requires both empathy for ordinary families and the grit to implement practical solutions. Her story remains rooted in the places and people of Tennessee, from the neighborhoods of Memphis to the classrooms of Knoxville and the courtrooms of Nashville.
FAQs
Who is Jerri Green?
Jerri Diane Mauldin Green is an American attorney, Memphis City Council member representing District 2, interim Chief Public Defender for Shelby County, and the 2026 Democratic nominee for Governor of Tennessee. She is a mother of three and a lifelong Tennessean who has worked as a public defender, nonprofit director, and senior policy advisor.
Where was Jerri Green born?
She was born on January 22, 1978, in Germantown, Tennessee, and raised in the Hickory Hill neighborhood of Memphis in Shelby County.
What is Jerri Green’s educational background?
She graduated from White Station High School in Memphis, earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and Political Science from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 1999, and received a Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center in 2003.
What is Jerri Green’s family situation?
She is married to Patrick Green, who works at FedEx Express and formerly played football for Vanderbilt. They have three children named Beau, Vivienne, and Wilder.
What major positions has Jerri Green held?
She has served as a juvenile public defender in Nashville and Memphis, Executive Director and Director of Community Engagement at the Community Legal Center, Senior Policy Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff to Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, Memphis City Council member for District 2 since 2024, and Interim Chief Public Defender for Shelby County beginning in 2026.
Has Jerri Green received any notable awards?
Yes. She was named a Superwoman in Business by the Memphis Business Journal in 2023 and selected as a fellow of the Aspen Institute’s Memphis Workforce Leadership Academy. The Tennessee Senate also honored her with a resolution during Women’s History Month in 2023.
Why is Jerri Green running for Governor of Tennessee?
She has stated that Tennessee families need leadership focused on affordability, fully funded public schools, healthcare access, public safety, and protection of basic freedoms. She cites her experience living in all three grand divisions of the state and working in the judicial, legislative, and executive branches as preparation for the role.