Elections in Tennessee

Elections in Tennessee are held to fill various local, state, and federal seats. Special elections may be held to fill vacancies at other points in time. Statewide legislative referrals and referendums may also be on the ballot in some elections. Tennessee is one of thirteen states that holds its presidential primaries on Super Tuesday.^[1]

Tennessee does not require voters to declare a party affiliation when registering. The state is one of eight states that require voters to present a form of photo identification.^[2] In a 2020 study, Tennessee was ranked as the 5th hardest state for citizens to vote in.^[3]

Between the end of the Civil War and the mid-20th century, Tennessee was part of the Democratic Solid South, but had the largest Republican minority of any former Confederate state.^[4] During this time, East Tennessee was heavily Republican and the western two thirds mostly voted Democratic, with the latter dominating the state.^[5] This division was related to the state's pattern of Unionist and Confederate loyalism during the Civil War.^[5]

Tennessee's politics are currently dominated by the Republican Party.^[6]^[7] Republicans currently hold both of the state's U.S. Senate seats, a majority of Congressional seats, and the state legislature. Democratic strength is largely concentrated in Nashville, Memphis, and parts of Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Clarksville. Several suburban areas of Nashville and Memphis also contain significant Democratic minorities.

^ "Super Tuesday 2020". US Presidential Election News. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
^ "Voter Identification Requirements". ncsl.org. National Conference of State Legislatures. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
^ J. Pomante II, Michael; Li, Quan (15 Dec 2020). "Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020". Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy. 19 (4). doi:10.1089/elj.2020.0666. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
^ Langsdon 2000, p. x.
^ ^a ^b Hunt, Keel (2018). Crossing the Aisle: How Bipartisanship Brought Tennessee to the Twenty-First Century and Could Save America. Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-0-8265-2241-2 – via Google Books.
^ Doble, Rob (December 24, 2020). "Analysis: The polarization express". Tennessee Lookout. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
^ Clouse, Allie (November 6, 2020). "As Georgia becomes a blue wedge in the Deep South, Tennessee cleaves tighter to the GOP". Knoxville News-Sentinel. Retrieved May 28, 2021.

[ST2020-1] "Super Tuesday 2020". US Presidential Election News. Retrieved April 24, 2019.

[2] "Voter Identification Requirements". ncsl.org. National Conference of State Legislatures. Retrieved May 25, 2021.

[3] J. Pomante II, Michael; Li, Quan (15 Dec 2020). "Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020". Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy. 19 (4). doi:10.1089/elj.2020.0666. Retrieved 14 January 2022.

[FOOTNOTELangsdon2000x-4] Langsdon 2000, p. x.

[hunt122-5] Hunt, Keel (2018). Crossing the Aisle: How Bipartisanship Brought Tennessee to the Twenty-First Century and Could Save America. Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-0-8265-2241-2 – via Google Books.

[6] Doble, Rob (December 24, 2020). "Analysis: The polarization express". Tennessee Lookout. Retrieved May 28, 2021.

[knoxnews1120222-7] Clouse, Allie (November 6, 2020). "As Georgia becomes a blue wedge in the Deep South, Tennessee cleaves tighter to the GOP". Knoxville News-Sentinel. Retrieved May 28, 2021.

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