Feature photo courtesy of Sidelines Archive
Story by Jackson Thomas
One of the most competitive local races in the 2024 election for Tennessee is District 49’s Tennessee State House of Representatives race with candidates Mike Sparks and Luis Mata.
District 49 encompasses most of Smyrna and parts of La Vergne. Mike Sparks is the incumbent candidate and has held his position in the State House since 2010.
The aspirant candidate in this election is Democrat Luis Mata. Mata has a decade-long career as a public policy advocate, where he helped enact numerous bipartisan laws to bolster Rutherford County’s labor force and assisted in running some of the strongest electoral campaigns in the state.
“Our priorities are the direct priorities of what we hear from voters in this district,” said Mata.
Mata explained that since launching his campaign in January, his team knocked on doors every day and listened to the concerns of his constituents.
His top two priorities include making sure that state leaders are “taking meaningful action” as well as lowering costs for working families.
Mata’s campaign focuses heavily on education in Tennessee. He addressed the educational voucher program introduced on the House floor that would give vouchers to working-class families so students could get out of the public school system and into charter and private schools.
“By implementing vouchers, you are basically laughing in the face of these 90% of students in Tennessee who attend public schools,” said Mata.
Mata said he is firmly against the voucher program, believing that public tax dollars should fund public schools.
On issues like heightened costs of college tuition and rent, Mata drove home the point that— as it stands right now—things like rent and tuition are not affordable. But they can be, which is essential to hold leaders accountable.
“Gunshot wounds are the leading cause of death in children and teens in Tennessee, and my opponent’s decisions in the state legislature are directly contributing to that statistic…We need to be prioritizing the lives of our children, our families, and our communities,” said Mata.
Regarding reproductive rights, he said that he fully trusts women to make decisions for their bodies.
“It should be between them and their politicians, period,” said Mata.
Mata weighed in on his stance on LGBTQ+ rights.
“I think that everyone, regardless of where you’re from, who you love, and what your background is, should be able to belong and thrive in our community,” said Mata.
He gave his opinion on what differentiates him from his opponent, Mike Sparks.
“He’s lost his way; right now, we’re at the point where it’s putting corporations over what matters,” said Mata. “I am 100% committed to making sure we are operating and legislating the working-class family.
The incumbent in this election is Republican Rep. Mike Sparks. Sparks has been the representative for District 49 for 14 years.
Sparks served as a Rutherford County Commissioner for eight years and a Smyrna Planning Commissioner for almost ten years before becoming a state representative.
On top of serving his community as a politician, Sparks has also served his community as a businessman. His first business was a fitness center that opened to the public when he was 21. In addition, Sparks has written many books mainly focused on his car company and how to increase earnings.
In his tenure as a representative, he has sponsored and co-sponsored several bills, most notably when he co-sponsored HB0001, which banned gender-affirming care for minors.
Sidelines contacted Sparks for an interview with no response.
Jackson Thomas is a contributing writer for MTSU Sidelines.
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