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U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R) defeated former Gov. Phil Bredesen (D) along with six Independent candidates in the general election for the United States Senate seat from Tennessee on November 6, 2018.
Thirty-five of the 100 seats in the United States Senate were up for election in 2018, including two seats up for special election. Republicans gained four previously Democratic-held seats and Democrats gained two previously Republican-held seats, resulting in a net gain of two seats for the Republican Party and a 53-seat majority in the chamber. This race was identified as a 2018 battleground that might have affected partisan control of the chamber in the 116th Congress. At the time of the election, Republicans held a 51-seat Senate majority. Democrats held 47 seats, and the two independents caucused with them. Democrats faced greater partisan risk in 2018, as they were defending 26 seats while Republicans were only defending nine. Democrats had to defend seats in 10 states Donald Trump (R) won. The GOP defended one Senate seat in a state Hillary Clinton (D) won.
Sen. Bob Corker (R), who was first elected in 2006, did not seek re-election in 2018. In September 2018, CNN called this race the single most important Senate race in the country. Satellite groups supporting Blackburn spent about $7 million through early October. Groups supporting Bredesen spent roughly $3.6 million. Election forecasters predicted this race to be competitive.
The Independent candidates running were Trudy Austin, John Carico, Dean Hill, Kevin Lee McCants, Breton Phillips, and Kris Todd.
U.S. Senate in Tennessee, General election
| Poll | Phil Bredesen (D) | Marsha Blackburn (R) | Undecided/Other | Margin of Error | Sample Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Tennessee State University October 22-29, 2018 | 44% | 44% | 12% | +/-4.0 | 610 |
| SSRS October 24-29, 2018 | 45% | 49% | 6% | +/-4.3 | 764 |
| Anderson Robbins Research and Shaw & Company Research October 27-30, 2018 | 41% | 50% | 5% | +/-3.0 | 850 |
| Marist Poll October 23-27, 2018 | 46% | 51% | 4% | +/-4.0 | 910 |
| Vanderbilt University October 8-13, 2018 | 44% | 43% | 12% | +/-4.9 | 800 |
| Reuters October 4-11, 2018 | 44% | 47% | 10% | +/-3.4 | 1,108 |
| NYT Upshot/Siena College October 7-11, 2018 | 40% | 54% | 6% | +/-4.2 | 593 |
| YouGov October 2-5, 2018 | 42% | 50% | 8% | +/-3.4 | 1,002 |
| Anderson Robbins Research and Shaw & Company Research September 29-October 2, 2018 | 43% | 48% | 10% | +/-3.5 | 806 |
| Triton Polling and Research September 10-12, 2018 | 45% | 48.3% | 6.7% | +/-3.0 | 1,038 |
| SSRS September 11-15, 2018 | 50% | 45% | 5% | +/-4.3 | 723 |
| NBC News/Marist August 25-28, 2018 | 48% | 46% | 6% | +/-5.1 | 538 |
| Gravis August 9-11, 2018 | 44% | 48% | 8% | +/-3.9 | 620 |
| Public Policy Polling July 10-11, 2018 | 44% | 41% | 15% | +/-4.1 | 583 |
| Middle Tennessee State University March 22-29, 2018 | 45% | 35% | 20% | +/-4.0 | 600 |
| Garin-Hart-Yang (commissioned by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee) October 20-22, 2017 | 46% | 41% | 13% | +/-4.1 | 601 |
The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phil Bredesen | Democratic Party | $19,621,772 | $19,461,777 | $159,996 | As of December 31, 2018 |
| Marsha Blackburn | Republican Party | $14,634,620 | $16,572,478 | $614,100 | As of December 31, 2018 |
| Breton Phillips | Independent | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available |
| Dean Hill | Independent | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available |
| John Carico | Independent | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available |
| Kevin Lee McCants | Independent | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available |
| Kris Todd | Independent | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available |
| Trudy Austin | Independent | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018.
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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U.S. Senate, Tennessee General Election, 2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Lamar Alexander Incumbent |
61.9% | 850,087 | |
| Democratic | Gordon Ball | 31.9% | 437,848 | |
| Independent | Ed Gauthier | 0.2% | 2,314 | |
| Independent | Bartholomew Phillips | 0.2% | 2,386 | |
| Independent | C. Salekin | 0.1% | 787 | |
| Independent | Danny Page | 0.6% | 7,713 | |
| Independent | Eric Schechter | 0.1% | 1,673 | |
| Constitution | Joe Wilmoth | 2.6% | 36,088 | |
| Independent | Joshua James | 0.4% | 5,678 | |
| Independent | Rick Tyler | 0.4% | 5,759 | |
| Tea Party | Tom Emerson, Jr. | 0.8% | 11,157 | |
| Green | Martin Pleasant | 0.9% | 12,570 | |
| Write-in | Erin Kent Magee | 0% | 5 | |
| Total Votes | 1,374,065 | |||
| Source: U.S. House Clerk "2014 Election Statistics" | ||||
U.S. Senate, Tennessee General Election, 2012
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Bob Corker Incumbent |
64.9% | 1,506,443 | |
| Democratic | Mark E. Clayton | 30.4% | 705,882 | |
| Constitution | Kermit Steck | 0.8% | 18,620 | |
| Green | Martin Pleasant | 1.7% | 38,472 | |
| Libertarian | Shaun E. Crowell | 0.9% | 20,936 | |
| Independent | David Gatchell | 0.3% | 6,523 | |
| Independent | Michael Joseph Long | 0.3% | 8,085 | |
| Independent | Troy Stephen Scoggin | 0.3% | 8,080 | |
| Total Votes | 2,320,189 | |||
| Source: Tennessee Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
Demographic data for Tennessee
| Tennessee | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|
| Total population: | 6,595,056 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 41,235 | 3,531,905 |
| Gender | ||
| Female: | 51.3% | 50.8% |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 77.8% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 16.8% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.6% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 4.9% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 85.5% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 24.9% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $45,219 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 21.4% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Tennessee. | ||
As of July 2016, Tennessee's three largest cities were Nashville-Davidson (pop. est. 667,885), Memphis (pop. est. 652,236), and Knoxville (pop. est. 187,347).
