Scott DesJarlais Bio
Scott Eugene DesJarlais (born 21 February 1964) is an American politician and physician who has served as the U.S. representative for Tennessee’s 4th congressional district since 2011. A Republican, DesJarlais represents a district that stretches across East and Middle Tennessee and is known for his conservative positions. Trained as a physician, he earned both a Bachelor of Science and a Doctor of Medicine from the University of South Dakota and moved to East Tennessee in 1993 to practice medicine.
First elected in 2010, DesJarlais is aligned with the conservative and Tea Party movements within the Republican caucus. His tenure in Congress has included committee work, re-election campaigns, and public attention for both policy votes and controversies related to his prior medical practice.
Scott DesJarlais Early Life and Background
Early Life and Background
Scott Eugene DesJarlais was born on 21 February 1964 in Des Moines, Iowa. He is the son of Joe DesJarlais, a barber, and Sylvia DesJarlais, a registered nurse. After his early years in Iowa, he grew up in Sturgis, South Dakota, where his family settled into a close-knit working-class community.
DesJarlais and his family built their own home in Sturgis, a multi-year project in which he worked alongside his parents and his brother and sister. The experience of constructing the house reflected the practical, hands-on upbringing that shaped his early years. His parents continued to live in Sturgis, maintaining the family base.
He pursued higher education in South Dakota, earning a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Psychology from the University of South Dakota in 1987. He continued at the same university, completing his Doctor of Medicine at the University of South Dakota School of Medicine in 1991, laying the academic foundation for his career in medicine.
Path to US Politics
After completing medical school, Scott Eugene DesJarlais moved to East Tennessee in 1993 to practice medicine as a generalist. He established himself at Grandview Medical Center in Jasper, Tennessee, eventually rising to the position of chief of staff. His decade of work in rural healthcare gave him direct exposure to the concerns of East Tennessee patients and families.
DesJarlais first stepped into public political life in 2009, when he filed papers to challenge Democratic incumbent Lincoln Davis for Tennessee’s 4th congressional district. He also entered a field that included Independents Paul H. Curtis, James Gray, Richard S. Johnson, and Gerald York. His campaign reflected the energy of the Tea Party movement, with which he has been associated throughout his career.
The early phase of his political career was shaped by his medical background and his conservative outlook. He leveraged his experience as a physician and his connections in East Tennessee to position himself as a reform-minded challenger. By the end of 2010, he had converted his activist base into a successful congressional campaign.
Scott DesJarlais Career
Early Career (2010-2012)
Scott Eugene DesJarlais launched his congressional career with a decisive victory in November 2010, defeating Democratic incumbent Lincoln Davis by a margin of 57 percent to 39 percent. The win came amid a national wave that favored Republican and Tea Party-aligned candidates. His first term covered a district that stretched almost diagonally across the state, reaching from coal-mining regions near Knoxville, the Tri-Cities, and Chattanooga to the outer suburbs of Nashville.
The early years of his tenure also brought controversy. Late in the 2010 race, Roll Call reported details from his 2001 divorce proceedings in which his ex-wife accused him of harassment, intimidation, and physical abuse. Despite the allegations, DesJarlais held his seat and began establishing himself in committee work and conservative policy debates.
Congressional Elections and Re-elections (2012-2020)
By the 2012 election, redistricting had reshaped Tennessee’s 4th congressional district, removing its northeastern portion and pushing it west to include suburban areas near Nashville, including Murfreesboro. DesJarlais faced Democratic state senator Eric Stewart and won with 56 percent of the vote to 44 percent. The same cycle featured a contested Republican primary in which state senator Jim Tracy challenged him; DesJarlais prevailed by just 38 votes, a margin narrow enough that Tracy considered but ultimately declined to dispute the result.
In 2014, DesJarlais held his seat in a race widely viewed as competitive. He went on to win subsequent primary and general elections, including a 2016 primary victory by 40 points and a general election win by nearly 30 points over Democrat Steven Reynolds. In 2020, he defeated Republican primary challenger Doug Meyer, a veteran and former police officer, before winning the general election.
Tenure and Conservative Movement (2011-Present)
Throughout his time in office, Scott Eugene DesJarlais has been a member of the Tea Party movement and an early congressional supporter of Donald Trump, becoming the first member of the House Freedom Caucus to endorse Trump’s presidential bid. His voting record has included support for the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022, an antitrust package aimed at cracking down on anti-competitive corporate behavior, and he voted to provide Israel with support following the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.
DesJarlais also generated headlines for votes that broke with parts of his caucus or drew national attention. In December 2020, he was one of 126 Republican members of the House to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election; the Supreme Court declined to hear the case. In June 2021, he was one of 14 House Republicans to vote against legislation establishing Juneteenth as a federal holiday, and in 2023 he was among 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
Notable Events and Milestones
One of the most discussed moments of DesJarlais’s career came in October 2012, when the Huffington Post obtained a transcript of a 2000 phone conversation in which he pressured a mistress to obtain an abortion. The disclosure stood in tension with his public anti-abortion stance. In 2014, DesJarlais announced he was undergoing aggressive chemotherapy for cancer in his neck that had spread to a lymph node; he announced in June 2015 that he was cancer-free. In May 2013, the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners formally reprimanded him for having sexual relationships with patients and fined him $500 plus $1,000 in costs.
Scott DesJarlais Family
Family Background and Personal Life
Scott Eugene DesJarlais was raised by his father, Joe DesJarlais, a barber, and his mother, Sylvia DesJarlais, a registered nurse. He grew up alongside a brother and sister in Sturgis, South Dakota, where the family built their own home over the course of a decade. The values of hard work and self-reliance in that household shaped his path toward medicine and later politics.
DesJarlais is an Episcopalian and, together with his wife Amy, is a member of the Epiphany Mission Episcopal Church in Sherwood, Tennessee. He and Amy have three children and make their home in South Pittsburg, Tennessee. DesJarlais was previously married to Susan DesJarlais; the marriage ended in divorce in 1998 after a legal process in which she made allegations that he has publicly disputed.