Tennessee Congressional District 1 candidate Kristi Burke

Kristi Burke is running as a Democrat in the race for Tennessee's First Congressional District. Her opponent is incumbent U.S. Rep. Diana Harshbarger, R-Tenn. The Kingsport Times News asked both candidates a series of the same questions, and this was Burke's reply. The following answers have been edited for clarity. Q: What motivates you to run for this position? A: I am running because constituents in East Tennessee are being ignored, dismissed, and shut out by the people paid to represent us. Right now, corporate power and extreme politics have taken over our representation. My opponent, Diana Harshbarger, doesn't answer phones, doesn't hold town halls, and has constituents removed by police just for asking basic questions. I came to this fight through lived experience, activism, and moral clarity. I do not have health insurance, and I know what it is like to watch politicians prioritize corporate cash and endless foreign wars over our basic survival. We deserve a representative who actually listens, tells the truth, and fights out loud. I am running to restore real, accountable democracy to TN-01 and prove that our government belongs to working families, not corporate lobbyists. Q: What qualifies you to hold this office? A: What qualifies me is that I actually live the daily realities facing working families in East Tennessee. I'm a muralist and grassroots organizer, not a career politician or corporate insider. Like far too many people across TN-01, I don't have health insurance. I know the constant anxiety of choosing between taking care of your health and paying an electric bill. I've spent years working directly with folks in our communities, confronting local corruption, and doing the hard work on the ground. When our current representative stopped showing up for public town halls and ignored her own constituents, I stepped up to demand accountability face-to-face. My qualifications don't come from corporate PAC checks or party leaders in Washington. They come from shared struggle, moral clarity, and an absolute refusal to let our district be ignored. Q: If elected, what issue specific to Tennessee Congressional District 1 would you firstaddress? A: The healthcare crisis crushing rural East Tennessee would be my first priority. Over the last decade, Tennessee has lost nearly 20 rural hospitals, leaving families in TN-01 driving over an hour for emergency care. Right now, nearly 10% of our neighbors have no health insurance at all, and countless others skip necessary prescriptions or go into debt just trying to survive. Meanwhile, our current representative takes thousands from big pharma and corporate PACs while voting to slash public healthcare and strip away coverage. I will start by fighting to fully fund our public clinics, expand Medicaid, cap prescription drug prices, and pass Medicare for All so no one loses their life or savings to a medical emergency. Healthcare is a basic human right, and I will stand up to the pharmaceutical lobbyists until every constituent in TN-01 gets the care they need. Q: What have you done during your campaign to earn voters' trust in November? A: I haven't spent this campaign hiding in donor dinners or taking corporate PAC money. I've spent it on the ground showing up for people in every single county across East Tennessee. We built a volunteer team in all 12 counties, knocking on doors, hosting community events, and meeting neighbors where they are. When our current representative stopped holding public town halls and shut down her mobile office hours, I showed up to hold her accountable and publicly challenged her to stand on a stage and debate. I'm running this campaign with complete transparency and zero corporate cash. I've proven that I won't back down from powerful interests, I won't hide from tough questions, and I will always listen to working families first. Trust isn't built through glossy mailers, it's earned by showing up and fighting out loud. Q: During your campaign, what issues have you found to be among voters' top priorities? A: Three massive issues come up everywhere I go across East Tennessee. Healthcare survival is number one. People are drowning in medical debt, watching rural hospitals close down, or going completely uninsured while struggling to afford basic prescriptions. The skyrocketing cost of living is second. Families are working full-time or taking multiple jobs, but stagnant wages can't keep up with corporate price-gouging on groceries, gas, and housing, especially as outside investors buy up local homes. Finally, people are furious about lost representation. Folks across the district feel completely ignored by politicians who take corporate PAC money, cancel public town halls and vote for special interests instead of listening to working families.