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Jim Vincent
Former state Rep. Jim Vincent said Wednesday he is considering trying to retake the House District 31 seat he once held from incumbent Rep. Jim Cobb, R-Spring City.
“I’m about 90 percent sure,” Mr. Vincent said in a telephone interview.
Mr. Vincent, a Republican who lives in Soddy-Daisy, said he is conducting a poll to gauge interest in a race.
The poll results will come back Friday and he plans to make his decision then, he said, adding that he expects the results to be favorable.
If he enters the race, Mr. Vincent will run against Rep. Cobb in the Aug. 7 Republican primary. The winner could face a Democratic nominee in the Nov. 4 general election.
District 31 comprises Rhea County and northern Hamilton County. Mr. Vincent said he lives in Hamilton County but has family roots in Rhea County.
Rep. Cobb, who won the seat in 2006, said Wednesday he did not want to comment.
“I won’t have any comments until he picks up his papers,” Mr. Cobb said.
Mr. Vincent, a real estate developer, served as District 31 representative from 2000 to 2004. Before that, he was a Hamilton County commissioner.
Mr. Vincent decided not to run for re-election in 2004 after being involved in a barroom fracas in Nashville with several other Republican legislators. He said Wednesday he learned humility from his experience.
“I suffered the worst three months of my life,” Mr. Vincent said. “If I didn’t learn from it, they (voters) shouldn’t be voting for me.”
Election officials in Hamilton and Rhea counties said Mr. Vincent has not yet picked up an election petition. Mr. Cobb has filed his papers, officials said. If Mr. Vincent steps into the race, it will mean a Hamilton County Republican running against a Rhea County Republican.
Asked why he would run against a fellow Republican, Mr. Vincent said he had been encouraged by friends in Nashville.
“I like Jim Cobb, I hadn’t planned to run against him,” he said. “I’m not running against him, I’m running for me.”
