Join Kosta and his guest: Jerri Green, Memphis City Council Member, Chief Public Defender and Democratic Candidate for Governor of Tennessee.

In this Episode: We’re recording this interview on Friday, October 16th, early voting has started in Tennessee, election day is 18 days away. Tennessee hasn’t elected a Democratic governor since 2006. The latest Beacon poll has you down 21 points among likely voters, 55 to 34. What do you know about this race that the polls don’t? You’ve called Marsha Blackburn a coward for refusing to debate, as a constituent, I agree. If you were up 20 points, would you debate you? What does it tell voters that the only debate on the calendar is you and two independents? Cookeville is about three hundred from Memphis, it might as well be another state. When people in Putnam County hear Memphis Politician, they hear someone who doesn’t understand Putnam County. Throughout your campaign you’ve made a point to remind voters you’ve lived in Knoxville, Nashville, and Memphis. But what do you understand about life in the Upper Cumberland, and what have rural voters taught you that you didn’t know before this campaign?

Find out more about Jerri Green:
https://greenforgovernor.com/about/

Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Knoxville, TN at the University of Tennessee. Special thanks to Knox County Young Democrats, Madeline Rust, Solomon Trapp and Tennessee College Democrats.

Important Putnam County (2026 Federal and State Election) Dates and information:
Federal and State Elections will be held on November 3rd with early voting from October 14th to October 29th.
All early voting for Putnam County voters takes place at the Putnam County Election Commission on 705 County Services Dr, Cookeville, TN 38501.
For more information visit on Putnam County polling locations visit: https://putnamcountytn.gov/election-commission

Register to vote, check your registration or update your voter registration: https://sos.tn.gov/govotetn

This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy.

Find out more about Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy:
https://aspirebarberandbeauty.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Danny Holmes, Mayor for the City of Baxter and County Commissioner for Putnam County Commission District 8.

In this episode: According to the Tennessee State Data Center, Baxter is the fastest growing municipality in Tennessee with a population under 5,000 seeing a 35% increase in population from 2020 to 2025. Congratulations. What’s bringing us to Baxter? In 2024 you won your race for Baxter Mayor as a write-in candidate after resigning as Chief of Police. What did this win tell you about what kind of leadership Baxter needs and do you believe you’ve fulfilled those expectations? You’re an institution of Baxter and Putnam County. How much of the Baxter you grew up with still exists today? How do we manage growth and preserve legacy at the same time?

Find out more about the City of Baxter:
https://www.baxtertn.gov

Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.

This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market.

Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market:
https://www.misssallies.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Grayson Cupit, Senior Software Engineer at Disney Streaming and Board President for the Culture Shock Collective.

In this episode: You’re exactly the kind of person we say we want to move to Cookeville. You’re a software engineer, community organizer, professional musician and a member of the least likely generation to move to Putnam County: Millennial. As a published researcher studying community resiliency, why do Millennials not want to move here? Cookeville and Putnam County are at a critical inflection point, and whether we want to admit it or not, in the very near future we’ll have to make decisions on topics like artificial intelligence, data centers and our digital security that will impact us for decades to come. What do you hope will happen? Do you think our current leadership has the knowledge and tools they need to reasonably make these decisions? You’re the newly elected President of the Board of the local non-profit Culture Shock, a community driven arts and community space working to provide a simple answer to a complex problem and reconnect our wider creative community with itself. Beyond a polished mission statement, what is Culture Shock?

Find out more about Culture Shock Collective: Coming Soon

Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.

This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy.

Find out more about Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy:
https://aspirebarberandbeauty.com