Friday is the first day of early voting for Tennessee’s primary and general elections. The Volunteer State will hold these elections on August 1.
The primary elections being held are for the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, even-numbered districts for the Tennessee Senate, and Tennessee House of Representatives.
General elections are also held for vacant state judicial offices and applicable county offices.
Early voting runs through July 27. The last day to request an absentee ballot is July 25.
Notable races this election cycle include the Republican primaries for the U.S. Senate and 4th and 5th congressional districts and the Democratic primaries for the state’s 9th Congressional District and U.S. Senate.
U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) faces a single opponent in the Republican primary – Entrepreneur Tres Wittum.
The Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate is a four-way face-off between Tennessee State Representative Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville), environmental activist Marquita Bradshaw, NAACP Membership Committee Chair Lola Denise Brown, and Fayette County educator Civil Miller-Watkins.
In the Republican primary for Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District, incumbent U.S. Representative Scott DesJarlais (R-TN-04) competes against two opponents: Army veteran Thomas Davis and school board member and Army veteran Joshua James.
The Republican primary for Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District is also notable as incumbent U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) is being challenged by Metro Nashville Council Member Courtney Johnston, who has reportedly raised over $700,000 since launching her campaign three months ago.
In the Democratic primary for Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District, incumbent U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) goes up against multiple opponents, including Memphis Police Officer Kasandra Smith, Navy veteran Corey Strong, and businessman M. LaTroy Williams.
The remaining incumbent members of Tennessee’s congressional delegation – U.S. Representatives Diana Harshbarger (R-TN-01), Tim Burchett (R-TN-02), Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03), John Rose (R-TN-06), Mark Green (R-TN-07), and David Kustoff (R-TN-08) – are running uncontested in their primary races.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “People Voting” by Tim Evanson. CC BY-SA 2.0.
