State Representative Jody Barrett (R-Dickson) officially launched a campaign for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District following the retirement of U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07).
Barrett made the announcement on Nashville’s Morning News with Dan Mandis Monday morning.
Green, who has represented Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District since his election to the seat in 2018 and has chaired the House Homeland Security Committee since 2023, announced his plans last month to retire from Congress and take a position in the private sector after the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The congressman cast his final vote in Congress on Thursday, where he voted with the majority to pass the budget reconciliation package.
On Friday, Green confirmed he was leaving Congress to enter the private sector to start his own company to help America “compete against the Chinese Communist Party.”
Barrett is one of multiple Republicans seeking to fill Green’s congressional seat.
🚨News Flash🚨It’s official! I just announced on @997wtn with @DanMandisShow that I’m entering the race to replace Congressman Mark Green in #TN7. I am the most conservative legislator in TN history & I’m ready to take some Tennessee Toughness to DC! https://t.co/ijjg5jrJU0
— Jody Barrett For Tennessee (@JodyBarrett4TN) July 7, 2025
The state representative’s congressional campaign’s website touts how Barrett was graded the “most conservative legislator in Tennessee history” by the group Tennessee Stands, which strongly lobbied against the Education Freedom Scholarship Act.
Barrett was one of the few Republicans who voted against the school choice program, despite the bill being endorsed by Governor Bill Lee and President Donald Trump.
Furthermore, while Barrett’s website suggests the state representative “stood up, voting to expel” the “radical leftists” who stormed the Tennessee Capitol in 2023, Barrett only voted to expel Democrats Justin Pearson (D-Memphis) and Justin Jones (D-Nashville), not Democrat Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville).
While Barrett sponsored 11 bills during the most recent legislative session of the General Assembly, none appear to have been passed and signed into law.
During the time Barrett was still exploring whether to launch a bid for Congress, he was encouraged to seek out Green’s seat from American country music singer-songwriter John Rich and others.
Prior to his official Monday announcement, Barrett stressed the importance for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District to continue being represented by a “battle-tested, principled, and proven” conservative leader, and warned that there is a plot by “establishment” Republicans to install a pre-selected “rubber stamp” candidate in Green’s seat.
Last month, Tennessee State Representative Jay Reedy (R-Erin) filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) formally launching a bid for the seat, while former Tennessee Department of General Services Commissioner Matt Van Epps and Montgomery County Commissioner Jason Knight both announced campaigns for Green’s seat.
Springfield resident Jon Thorpe announced his bid for Green’s seat before the congressman announced his departure.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Jody Barrett” by Jody Barrett.
