My Representative

Jimmy Naifeh
District 81 - Haywood County and part of Tipton County

Biography

James O. Naifeh, known as Jimmy, served as the Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives for the past 18 years and was the longest serving Speaker of the House in Tennessee history. In 2009, he was named Speaker Emeritus of the Tennessee House of Representatives of the 106th General Assembly.

Naifeh, a second-generation Lebanese-American from Covington, is a graduate from the University of Tennessee and a veteran of the United States Army where he earned the rank of First Lieutenant before being honorably discharged.

First elected to the House of Representatives in 1974, Speaker Naifeh represents House District 81, which includes most of Tipton County and all of Haywood County. Before being elected Speaker, Naifeh served as chairman of the Rules Committee, House Ethics Committee, Majority Floor Leader, Majority Leader, and chairman of the Rural West Tennessee Democratic Caucus.

Speaker Emeritus Naifeh has received a number of awards, including “Legislator of the Year” by a variety of agencies including the Tennessee Association of Human Resource Agencies, the Tennessee District Attorney Generals Conference, the Tennessee School Boards Association, and the Tennessee Sheriffs’ Association. Naifeh also received the Tennessee Supreme Court Appreciation Award in 2006 and the Tennessee School Boards Association Legislative Award in 2007. He also received the William M. Bulger Excellence in State Legislative Leadership Award.

Speaker Emeritus Naifeh has three children and six grandchildren and is a member of the St. Matthews Episcopal Church in Covington.