Shaking hands and kissing babies: former Nashville Mayor Megan Barry, who is running for Congress in Tennessee District 7. talks to a future voter on Tuesday. (Photo: John Partipilo)
In addition to the 2024 presidential contest, all 99 Tennessee House members are on the ballot and half of the state’s 33 senators. Plus, voters are weighing three high-profile federal races — incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn faces off against Democratic state Rep. Gloria Johnson in one.
Two Tennessee congressional districts feature competitive races. In District 5, embattled incumbent Republican Rep. Andy Ogles faces Nashville activist Maryam Abolfazli. And in District 7, Rep. Mark Green goes head to head with former Nashville Mayor Megan Barry.
Tennessee’s 11 electoral votes are likely not in play for the presidential election, but several key races merit attention.
State legislative races to watch
The seven state House seats
Seven state House races are competitive, with Republicans defending four seats and Democrats two.
A sweep by either party wouldn’t change control or supermajority status, but if Democrats have any chance of clawing themselves out of irrelevance this decade, they’ll need to start flipping some seats. For Republicans, winning a Nashville state House seat would mark a significant victory, as the party dominates rural and suburban areas but has struggled in the capital city in recent elections.
The races
Nashville:
Democrat Shaundelle Brooke vs. Republican Chad Bobo (open seat, Democratic incumbent)
Smyrna-LaVergne:
Republican Rep. Mike Sparks (incumbent) vs. Democrat Luis Mata
Clarksville:
Republican Rep. Jeff Burkhart (incumbent) vs. Democrat Allie Phillips
Democratic Rep. Ronnie Glynn (incumbent) vs. Republican Jamie Peltz
Knoxville:
Republican Rep. Elaine Davis (incumbent) vs. Democrat Bryan Goldberg
Signal Mountain:
Republican Michele Reneau vs. Democrat Kathey Lennon (open seat)
Memphis
Republican John Gillepsie vs Democrat Jesse Huseth
Where could a surprise come from?
Watch the race between Democratic Sen. Heidi Campbell and Republican Wyatt Rampey in Nashville’s suburbs as an indicator of Republican strength. Campbell defeated a Republican incumbent in 2020.
For Democratic performance, monitor Republican Rep. Johnny Garrett’s race against Democrat Alison Beale in Goodlettsville and the U.S. House contest between Republican Rep. Mark Green and Democrat Megan Barry. Close margins in these races could signal a good night for Democrats, who don’t necessarily need to win these races to feel better about the party’s chance moving forward.
Will Haywood County go Republican?
Davidson, Shelby and Haywood counties were Tennessee’s only Democratic strongholds in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.
While Nashville (Davidson County) and Memphis (Shelby County) traditionally vote Democratic, Haywood County represents the last remnant of West Tennessee’s former Democratic base.
Gov. Bill Lee narrowly won Haywood County in 2022, though Biden and Clinton each carried it by about 700 votes.
Last updated: 7:14 pm
3 hours ago
Tennessee candidates make last minute bid to win voters
Tennessee’s GoVoteTN app, which experienced temporary problems as large volumes of users tried to access it Tuesday morning, is fully functioning again, according to a spokesperson for Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett.
The downloadable app is a tool voters can access to look up polling locations and view sample ballots and other information.
High usage created temporary lag times, Hargett announced earlier Tuesday.
“The GoVoteTN App is operating with full functionality. Voters can also continue visiting https://tnmap.tn.gov/voterlookup/ to access trusted Election Day information.”
Voters may also access a website with the same information here.
Last updated: 3:09 pm
4 hours ago
House District 45 candidates seek last-minute votes
State Rep. Johnny Garrett, a Goodlettsville Republican, does some last minute campaigning on Tuesday. (Photo: Sam Stockard)
In the race for House District 45 in Sumner County, Republican Rep. Johnny Garrett and Democratic challenger Alison Beale campaigned at lunchtime outside the Long Hollow Church polling place where the wait was about two hours to cast a ballot.
Some voters were leaving the site and hoping to come back later when lines might be shorter.
Beale said she felt Sumner County didn’t have enough early voting locations, which made it more difficult for people to vote during the two-week period. Two early voting sites were available in Hendersonville and Gallatin, and two other temporary sites were used for a limited time.
Beale, a former teacher, said she continued pushing a message that Tennessee Democrats are “the party of the people.”
“I’m running to try to restore some humanity to politics. We need leaders who are willing to lead with compassion and genuine care for others. My message has always been that it’s not radical to care about people,” Beale said.
Properly funding public schools, ensuring children are fed, making sure people can earn a living wage and providing women access to healthcare so their lives aren’t at risk are critical to the state’s future, she said.
Garrett, a Goodlettsville attorney, said his message for the day was to bring out the vote amid windy conditions but good weather. He said people weren’t deterred despite the two-hour wait to vote at Long Hollow Church, just off Long Hollow Pike near Beech High School.
“I’m hearing turnout is up across the state, so I’m hoping those people will vote for Trump,” Garrett said of the Republican presidential candidate. “I hope they vote for me, too, but that’s not across the state.”
He expected Tennessee to be a safe state for Trump and hoped Republicans would pick up down-ballot victories as well. Garrett predicted Tennessee House Republicans would maintain a 75-member supermajority in the 99-member body and possibly pick up a couple of seats as six posts are expected to be tightly contested.
Alison Beale, Democratic candidate for State House 45, at Long Hollow Church in Sumner County. (Photo: Sam Stockard)
Last updated: 3:16 pm
6 hours ago
Tennessee voter app experiences high user volumes, glitches
Tennessee’s GoVoteTN app, a tool to look up polling locations and view sample ballots and other information is experiencing high user volumes, creating lag times and error messages.
Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett said voters may use a website instead to look up information: https://tnmap.tn.gov/voterlookup
“We are currently experiencing a high volume of traffic with our GoVoteTN App, resulting in longer wait times for users. We appreciate your patience as we work to resolve this issue,” Hargett posted on X.
Last updated: 4:39 pm
6 hours ago
U.S. Senators Blackburn, Hagerty join Republicans to rally supporters in Memphis
Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn stumps with Rep. John Gillespie, thought to be in a tight relation race, on election day, November 5, 2024 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Tennessee Lookout/Karen Pulfer Focht)
U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty arrived outside a polling place at Second Baptist Church in East Memphis Tuesday morning, greeting incumbent Tennessee House Rep. John Gillespie and a small crowd of supporters adorned with “Gillespie” signs and “Marsha” stickers.
Blackburn emerged from their vehicle wearing a bright yellow blazer and carrying two boxes of donuts. She handed them out while posing for pictures with supporters and their children.
For a brief 30 minutes, Blackburn, Hagerty, Gillespie, state Sen. Brent Taylor, R-Memphis, and state Rep. Ron Gant, R-Piperton, gathered to rally Tennessee Republicans to vote.
“We are all in,” Blackburn said to a video camera. “Remember, today, start at the top, vote for Trump, vote for me for U.S. Senate, come on down that ballot. You’ve got (U.S. Rep. David) Kustoff, you’ve got Gillespie, you’ve got (state Rep. Ron) Gant. Let’s win this thing.”
“Remember, Kamala broke it,” she said, with supporters joining in for the rest of the slogan: “Trump will fix it.”
Hagerty said he flew in from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania early Tuesday morning following Trump’s final rally in the battleground state. He said he’s seen a “tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm” and early voting turnout was “extremely favorable,” but it comes down to Tuesday’s results.
“I don’t just want to see President Trump win the electoral college,” Hagerty said. “I think he will, but I want to see him win the popular vote, too, and that’s where every Tennessean’s vote will matter.”
Blackburn said her campaign has been “all over the state” from Chattanooga to upper East Tennessee, the Tri Cities and Knoxville. Memphis was one of her stops working her way back to Middle Tennessee.
She rebuffed criticism that she has not been interacting with Tennessee constituents, citing her weekly newsletter, Facebook podcast and telephone town halls as efforts to “stay in touch with people.”
“I have been out every single day,” Blackburn said.
She refused to participate in public debates, she said, because her opponent, state Rep. Gloria Johnson, is a “dishonest Democrat.”
“I know that I spend plenty of time talking with people and listening to people, and that is the route we chose,” she said.
Blackburn said the race for her U.S. Senate seat in 2018 was aggressive, but this year, “people have seen what I will do, what I have done as their U.S. Senator,” listing her positions on inflation, the southern border and what she calls the “Axis of Evil” (Russia, China, Iran and North Korea).
Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty with Rep. John Gillespie, a Memphis Republican, on election day, November 5, 2024 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Tennessee Lookout/Karen Pulfer Focht)
Last updated: 4:04 pm
7 hours ago
FBI establishes Tennessee command post to respond to election threats
The FBI in Tennessee has established a 24-hour Election Command Post to coordinate response to election-related threats.
“The FBI takes all threats of violence seriously, including threats targeting those who do the critical work of administering free and fair elections throughout the U.S.,” a statement from the agency said.
Similar command posts have been established across the country. The Tennessee command post will assess reported threats, including election fraud, voter suppression, foreign malign influence, malicious cyber activity against election infrastructure, and threats to election workers.
The FBI in Tennessee encourages citizens to report allegations of election fraud and other election abuses directly at 615-232-7500.
Last updated: 12:32 pm
8 hours ago
Tennessee’s GOP leaders stump for former President Donald Trump
With Election Day underway, Tennessee’s elected officials turn to X (formerly known as Twitter) to campaign for former President Donald Trump.
Gov. Bill Lee:
It’s Election Day in Tennessee!
Proud to cast my vote for @realDonaldTrump & @JDVance to restore conservative leadership in the White House & deliver opportunity, security, & freedom for the American people. pic.twitter.com/ccktDK9ISN
At the Nashville Public Library’s Bellevue Branch, where long lines marked early voting, about 65 people had voted by 7:30 a.m., said Tom Bayersdorfer, a poll supervisor.
The library serves as the voting site for two west Nashville precincts, and Bayersdorfer said they were prepared for any volume of voters that came their way: 18 people are working election day at the small precinct with fewer than ten voting booths.
Walking out of the library after casting their votes, Daryl Rocco and Robert Stefanovich had different perspectives on the 2024 presidential election after casting their votes.
Darryl Rocco, left, and Robert Stefanovich cast their vote at the Nashville Public Library Bellevue Branch on Nov. 5, 2024 (Photo: Anita Wadhwani)
“I’m hopeful for Kamala and maybe some change could happen,” Rocco said.
“The real problems the country is facing are not going to be fixed no matter who wins,” Stefanovich said. “I would be happy if we could turn to the next chapter.”
Both had criticisms for the role of media coverage in this year’s election.
“It’s too much like reality TV,” Rocco said of the coverage. “People are looking at this as if it’s reality TV and it’s not.”
Rocco eschews nearly all media, turning to the Associated Press for reliable information, she said.
Last updated: 10:02 am
10 hours ago
Early voting drops 3% in Tennessee as Davidson, Shelby counties see declines
More than 2.2 million Tennesseans cast ballots during early voting over the past two weeks as turnout nearly reached 46%, nearly 3% fewer than the 2020 presidential election total.
Photojournalists John Partipilo and Karen Pulfer Focht photographed early voting sites in Nashville and Memphis, even as both counties saw declines in early voting.
A woman casts her early vote at Memphis’s Gaisman Park early voting site. (Karen Pulfer Focht)
