Nashville attorney ends U.S. Senate campaign effort

Nashville attorney Joanne Sowell has decided not to run as a Democrat for U.S. Senate next year.

After establishing a campaign in April, Sowell filed a termination report with Federal Election Commission on Friday. In the report, she reported raising nearly $130,000 from individual donors and contributing another $76,449.76 herself.

At the end of June, she returned $128,791 to donors.

Sowell confirmed that she had ended her “testing the waters” phase but declined to comment further.

"Tennessee deserves a senator who is committed to working across the aisle on the issues that matter the most, one who will represent the state with dignity and put partisanship aside," Sowell said through a spokesperson in May.

The Democratic nominee is expected to face Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who would be favored to win reelection.

In May, state Rep. Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville) told the Post she is “definitely considering a run.” She could not be reached for comment Friday.