Tennessee, Governor - Power Voter

Tennessee held an election for governor on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was April 5, 2018.

SETTING THE STAGE
Heading into the 2018 election, the sitting governor was Bill Haslam (R), who was first elected in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014. Haslam was prevented from seeking a third term in 2018 due to term limits.
Heading into the election, Tennessee was a Republican trifecta. It had held this status since Haslam took office in 2011. Tennessee was also a Republican triplex.
Tennessee was won by the Republican candidate in each of the previous five presidential elections. The widest margin of victory was Donald Trump's 26 percent margin in 2016 while the narrowest was George W. Bush's four percent margin in 2000.

Tennessee was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election.

Race rating

Race ratings: Tennessee gubernatorial election, 2018

Race tracker	Race ratings
	November 5, 2018	October 30, 2018	October 23, 2018	October 16, 2018
The Cook Political Report	Likely Republican	Likely Republican	Likely Republican	Likely Republican
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Solid Republican	Likely Republican	Likely Republican	Likely Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe Republican	Safe Republican	Safe Republican	Safe Republican

State election history

This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Tennessee from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Tennessee Secretary of State.

Historical elections

Presidential elections

Election results (President of the United States), Tennessee 2000-2016

Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2016	Donald Trump	60.7%	Hillary Clinton	34.7%	26.0%
2012	Mitt Romney	59.5%	Barack Obama	39.1%	20.4%
2008	John McCain	56.9%	Barack Obama	41.8%	15.1%
2004	George W. Bush	56.8%	John Kerry	42.5%	14.3%
2000	George W. Bush	51.2%	Al Gore	47.3%	3.9%

U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2014

This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Tennessee from 2000 to 2014. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

Election results (U.S. Senator), Tennessee 2000-2014

Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2014	Lamar Alexander	61.9%	Gordon Ball	31.9%	30.0%
2012	Bob Corker	64.9%	Mark Clayton	30.4%	34.5%
2008	Lamar Alexander	65.1%	Bob Tuke	31.6%	33.5%
2006	Bob Corker	50.7%	Harold Ford, Jr.	48.0%	2.7%
2002	Lamar Alexander	54.3%	Bob Clement	44.3%	10.0%
2000	Bill Frist	65.1%	Jeff Clark	32.2%	32.9%

Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Tennessee.

Election results (Governor), Tennessee 2000-2016

Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2014	Bill Haslam	70.3%	Charles Brown	22.8%	47.5%
2010	Bill Haslam	65.0%	Mike McWherter	33.1%	31.9%
2006	Phil Bredesen	68.6%	Jim Bryson	29.7%	38.9%
2002	Phil Bredesen	50.7%	Van Hilleary	47.6%	3.1%

Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Tennessee in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

Congressional delegation, Tennessee 2000-2016

Year	Republicans	Republicans (%)	Democrats	Democrats (%)	Balance of power
2016	7	77.8%	2	22.2%	R+5
2014	7	77.8%	2	22.2%	R+5
2012	7	77.8%	2	22.2%	R+5
2010	4	44.4%	5	55.6%	D+1
2008	4	44.4%	5	55.6%	D+1
2006	4	44.4%	5	55.6%	D+1
2004	4	44.4%	5	55.6%	D+1
2002	5	55.6%	4	44.4%	R+1
2000	5	55.6%	4	44.4%	R+1

Trifectas, 1992-2017

A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

Tennessee Party Control: 1992-2019
Five years of Democratic trifectas • Nine years of Republican trifectas

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19
Governor	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
Senate	D	D	D	D	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	S	S	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
House	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R

Demographics

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).