NASHVILLE (AP) - State Sen. Eric Stewart says he will run to represent Tennessee's 4th Congressional District next year.
The decision Thursday means the Winchester Democrat won't be able to seek another term to his seat in the General Assembly.
State lawmakers have yet to approve redistricting plans for either legislative or congressional seats, though the shape of both Stewart's current Senate district and the 4th District are expected to change significantly because their current populations fall well below the ideal number following the 2010 Census.
Republican U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais, a Jasper physician, last year trounced incumbent Democratic Rep. Lincoln Davis to win the 4th District seat that spans 24 counties from state lines of Kentucky to Alabama.
Thirty-nine-year-old Stewart was elected to the state Senate in 2008.