“Supermajority” is a four-part podcast series telling the story of three Tennessee mothers who, reeling from a mass shooting at their kids’ school, dive headlong into political activism and gun control. But the story is about more than guns. It’s about who gets to have a say in politics when these women, all lifelong conservatives, step inside their state capitol for the first time. They assume they’ll be listened to – they’re affluent, white, Christian. Instead, they’re met by a Republican majority unwilling to consider their pleas.
Reporter Meribah Knight isn’t just watching three women grapple with their politics; she’s giving listeners a front row seat to how one-party control can lead to divisions of a different sort – between politicians and constituents of the same political affiliation. Integrating herself into the women’s lives, Knight documents as they clash with Proud Boys, lobby lawmakers, write bills, and come face-to-face with a political majority that seems at best out of touch with many constituents and at worst veering toward authoritarianism.
In a year when all eyes are on the incoming administration and deep divisions in Washington, it’s critical to keep an eye on the state of democracy in our own backyards – where everything from local school funding to abortion rights hang in the balance.
The series opens with a high-stakes special session called by Tennessee’s Republican governor. An effort, in the wake of the Covenant School shooting, to pass some sort of gun control legislation. The three women worked hard to lay the groundwork – meeting with 50+ legislators, lobbying bills, strategizing. And now, they arrive at the Capitol to see how it’ll pay off. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t. Not a single bill they support passes. We capture the raw emotion as the women watch all this unfold.
A few months later, reinvigorated, the women are back at the capital for the ordinary session. Wearing shirts that say “get used to seeing these faces” they doggedly continue their work – all while balancing careers and motherhood. And this time it’s not just gun control on the agenda. They watch as lawmakers debate bills on abortion, education, police violence and LGBTQ rights. And as they do, the women start to ask themselves: Where the heck have I been? And where is the Republican party I once knew?
The series turns its attention to the 2024 elections and the challenges facing candidates in Tennessee, particularly moderate Republicans. When one of the Covenant moms, Melissa Alexander, considers running for office, she learns that unusual and deeply restrictive Tennessee GOP guidelines prevent her from doing so. New GOP bylaws now reject prospective candidates who haven’t voted in enough Republican primaries. On the flip side, the series highlights when far left progressives go after two of the women, lashing out at them for speaking with a far-right media personality. A prescient moment considering the post-election critiques of where Democrats fell short with moderate voters.
