By JR Robinson, CEO of JustMy

The dust has settled. The TV ads have gone dark, the yard signs are sitting in rain gutters, and the 2026 local elections are officially in the history books.

And if you’ve been paying attention to JustMyMemphis over the last few months, you know we didn’t hold back.

We threw hard punches. We called out corruption. We called people incompetent, corrupt, and unqualified. Some of the people we trash-talked got elected. Some of the people we warned you about are taking their oaths of office right now.

And along the way, social media decided to give us a brand-new nickname: "JustMyGOP." People accused us of taking Republican checks, flipping sides, and carrying water for the GOP because we did more conservative reporting this cycle than we ever have in our platform’s history.

So let’s address the elephant in the room right now.

We Aren't Anti-Democrat. We Aren't Anti-Republican. We Are Anti-Failure.

If you’re calling us "JustMyGOP" because we held the establishment’s feet to the fire, you missed the entire point. But here’s the crazy part: you kept reading. Even when you were mad, even when you posted angry comments, you couldn’t look away. Why? Because deep down, you knew we were pointing at facts nobody else in local media wanted to talk about.

Let’s get one thing straight: JustMy is not anti-Democrat, and we are not anti-Republican. We are anti-corruption. We are anti-racism. And above all else, we are anti-neglect when it comes to the children and the future of Shelby County.

People asked why we were so brutal on local leadership this cycle. It’s simple: look at the numbers.

For the last eight years, one party has held absolute power in Shelby County. And while people are out here wearing campaign t-shirts and celebrating political brands like they’re sports teams, look at where that leadership has landed us:

• Our Schools are Failing Our Kids: Over 70% of students in Memphis-Shelby County Schools still cannot read on grade level. Read that again. A clear majority of our children are being handed a sentence of generational poverty, and the people in power—the ones smiling on stage—have allowed it to happen year after year while claiming they "care about the youth."

• Fiscal Mismanagement: Shelby County recently had to borrow $120 million just to cover basic payroll. We weren’t in that position eight years ago. How do you mismanage a county budget so severely that you can't pay your own workers without a bail-out loan?

• Crime & Accountability: We watched local policies dismantle basic law enforcement accountability, contributing to crime spikes so severe that state and federal task forces had to step in.

Now, let’s be fair. Is the GOP blameless? Absolutely not. State-level gun laws pushed by Republicans have flooded our streets with weapons, making our local police officers' jobs harder and our neighborhoods more dangerous. We see it, and we report it.

But you cannot blame local, ground-level administrative failure on Republicans when Republicans haven't held local power here in nearly a decade.

Doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result isn't just bad politics—it is the literal definition of insanity. And for eight years, Shelby County has been trapped in that exact loop.

A Personal Note to Mayor Mickell Lowery & Our Elected Leaders

I want to take a moment to address County Mayor Mickell Lowery. I have known Mickell for a very long time. I consider him a friend. I congratulate him on his victory.

But as a journalist, as a CEO, and as a citizen who loves this city, I also have to be honest: the policies and leadership of the last eight years failed our youth and broke our financial foundation. My question to Mayor Lowery and every newly elected official isn't born out of malice; it’s born out of urgency: If the playbook of the last eight years led us to failing schools, high crime, and a $120M payroll loan... what are you going to do differently this time?

I Apologize for the Bruises. I Don't Apologize for the Truth.

If our coverage over the past few months offended you, insulted your favorite candidate, or made you uncomfortable—I apologize for the sting.

I know my intentions don't change how an article made you feel in the moment. But my intention was never to tear down Memphis. My intention was to shock our community awake. I wanted you to see the raw, unfiltered truth so that when you walked into that voting booth, you weren't voting on bumper-sticker slogans or party loyalty—you were voting on reality.

The election is over. The voters have spoken. The political arguments are finished.

Now, the real work begins.

We cannot afford four more years of excuses, finger-pointing, or party tribalism. We cannot sit by while another generation of kids grows up unable to read, or while our local government lives on borrowed money.

Memphis and Shelby County deserve a complete operational reset. And that is why today, JustMy is officially launching our vision for Shelby County 2.0.

Shelby County 2.0 is not a political party. It is not a candidate PAC. It is a community-wide movement and civic framework designed to do what politics has failed to do:

1. Fix Our Schools First: Putting real, measurable civic resources, AI literacy, and community accountability into our classrooms so every child reads on grade level.

2. Economic & Business Opportunity: Using modern technology, local AI infrastructure, and community newsstands to elevate local businesses, create real jobs, and stop the economic drain.

3. True Community Transparency: Holding every leader accountable—Red or Blue—with raw data, unfiltered journalism, and local civic intelligence (powered by AskSKY!) so the citizens always know where their money and their leadership stand.

4. Uniting Our Region: Bridging the gap between city and county, neighborhood by neighborhood, to build a safe, thriving, and prosperous home for all of us.

Let’s Build Something Great Together

The campaign season is done. The fight is over. It’s time to put down the partisan battle axes and pick up the building tools.

To our elected officials: we are watching, but more importantly, we are here to help you succeed if you are ready to do the real work. To our citizens, business owners, teachers, and neighbors: JustMyMemphis was built for you. We are investing heavily in this city because we believe in what Memphis can become when we stop accepting mediocrity.

We pissed people off because we care. Now, let’s channel that energy into building a city we can all be proud of.

Welcome to Shelby County 2.0. Let’s go build something great.

— JR Robinson CEO & Co-Founder, JustMy / JustMyMemphis