Opehlia Ford
Ophelia Ford represents Senate District 29 in Memphis. Her family has been heavily involved in Memphis, Tennessee, and national politics since the 1890’s. She is the younger sister of former state Senator John Ford and former United States Representative Harold Ford, Sr. and the aunt of former Congressman Harold Ford, Jr.
John Ford represented District 29 for over 30 years, leaving office in 2005. Ophelia Ford ran for her brother's Senate seat and defeated State Representative Henri Brooks in the special Democratic Primary. She went on to defeat Republican candidate Terry Roland by 13 votes in the special General Election. Allegations of improprieties by election officials cast a pall over the General Election, leading to its voiding by the Tennessee Senate.
In 2006, Ford again ran against Roland for the seat. This time she won by over 18,000 votes, besting her Republican challenger 72 percent to 28 percent.
Senator Ford is a certified funeral service practitioner at N.J. Ford and Sons funeral home, which the Tennessean once called “a community-centered outfit that lent ambulances and limousines to the civil rights movement and helped out those who could not afford to bury their loved ones.”
She is also a notary public and a licensed insurance agent. She is a lifetime member of the NAACP and is active in numerous community organizations, including St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
Contact:
District 29 - Part of Shelby County
District Address
54 North Arcadian #102
Memphis, TN 38109
Phone: (901) 948-7755
Nashville Address
6A Legislative Plaza
Nashville, TN 37243-0029
Phone (615) 741-1767
Staff Contacts: Christopher Smith
07-08-08
05-21-08
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