Tennessee primary election results live blog

Incumbent Congressman Andy Ogles has lost the GOP primary to Charlie Hatcher, despite the backing of President Donald Trump.

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In Tennessee’s redrawn 4th District — where some South Nashvillians have found themselves after redistricting — incumbent Rep. Scott DesJarlais is now set to face off against Fayetteville’s Victoria Broderick.

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Nashville businessman Darden Copeland has won the Democratic primary for Tennessee’s new 7th Congressional District — nearly a year after losing to state Rep. Aftyn Behn, D-Nashville, in a special congressional primary for the seat.

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State Rep. Johnny Garrett will face Democrat Mike Croley in the midterm election for Tennessee’s 6th District congressional seat.

Garrett, an eight-year state lawmaker from Goodlettsville defeated former U.S. Rep. Van Hilleary for the Republican ticket.

With incumbent U.S. Rep. John Rose vacating the seat to run for governor, the 6th District race shaped up to be one of the most competitive in the state, as Garrett and Hilleary’s experience and fundraising totals made them formidable competitors.

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Ultimately, Garrett — an eight-year state lawmaker from Goodlettsville — prevailed. While both Garrett and Hilleary raised well over a million dollars, Garrett garnered roughly $800,000 more and outpaced Hilleary in spending.

Garrett, who calls himself a “Trump conservative,” also defeated two other candidates who had substantially less cash on hand.

After redistricting, Garrett does have less connection to the district; while he is now the 6th District GOP nominee, his statehouse district is now mainly in the 7th.

Garrett will face off against Croley, a military veteran and efficiency engineer from Crossville. Croley pulled off the victory in the field of five Democrats, despite being out fundraised by Chaney Mosley and competing against the last election’s primary winner, Lore Bergman.

Two state lawmakers will go head-to-head for Memphis’ former congressional district. Tennessee Sen. Brent Taylor, R-Memphis, won the GOP primary and could now flip the seat red under the new District 9 map. In the general election, he’ll face state Rep. Justin J. Person, D-Memphis, of the “Tennessee Three.”

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U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn has won the Republican primary for governor and now faces Memphis Democrat Jerri Green in the general election.

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Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty will face off against Democrat Marquita Bradshaw this fall.

As Hagerty seeks out a second term, his path has remained smooth — he faced no Republican challengers in the primary, has President Trump’s endorsement and his fundraising totals dwarfed those of Democrats.

None of the four Democrats on the ballot raised more than $10,000, while Hagerty has more than $5 million on hand. Democrats haven’t won a U.S.  Senate election in Tennessee since Al Gore in 1990.

But Bradshaw will give it a try. She has won the ticket before — the Memphis native and environmental activist unsuccessfully ran against Hagerty in the general election in 2020.

While Tennessee’s other Senate seat — held by Sen. Marsha Blackburn — isn’t up for reelection, it could soon see change. Blackburn is running for governor. If elected, she or outgoing Gov. Bill Lee would appoint someone to finish out her term in the Senate.

As of 7:40 p.m., a few Tennessee contest winners have been declared by the Associated Press. They are:

Governor

Jerri Green has won the Democratic nomination for governor.

Congress

• Scott DesJarlais won the Republican nomination for U.S. House in Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District.
• Kristi Burke won the Democratic nomination for U.S. House in Tennessee’s 1st Congressional District.

How many voters are there in Tennessee?

As of June 1, there were about 4.7 million registered voters in Tennessee.

How many people actually vote?

There were about 411,000 Republican primary voters and about 205,000 Democratic primary voters in the last U.S. Senate primaries in 2024. In the last primaries for governor in 2022, the Republican contest had about 494,000 voters, while the Democratic contest had about 258,000 voters.

How much of the vote is cast early or by absentee ballot?

About 55% of the 2024 state primary vote and about 54% of the 2022 state primary vote was early in person or by mail.

As of Saturday, about 397,000 Republican primary ballots and about 225,000 Democratic primary ballots had already been cast in Thursday’s election.

How long does vote-counting usually take?

In the 2024 state primary, the AP first reported results at 8:02 p.m. ET, or two minutes after polls closed.

The last vote update of the night was at 11:19 p.m. ET, with more than 99.9% of total votes counted.

How do recounts work?

In Tennessee, recounts are held only as part of a legal challenge in the courts. There are no automatic recounts, and losing candidates may not request recounts. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

A new Tennessee congressional map that carved up a majority Black district in Memphis is making its electoral debut Thursday in a primary election that will determine the nominees for a Republican attempt at a clean sweep of the state’s U.S. House districts in the midterms.

The primaries were upended just three months before the vote when the Republican-led Legislature redrew congressional districts following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that weakened federal Voting Rights Act protection for minorities. President Donald Trump cheered the redistricting as part of a national plan to try to help Republicans hold on to their slim House majority.

More: Election coverage from WPLN

Trump has endorsed state Sen. Brent Taylor in the four-person Republican primary for the significantly reshaped 9th Congressional District, which now stretches about 200 miles (320 kilometers) east from Memphis before reaching north toward the Nashville area. The district, which previously favored Democrats, now tilts toward Republicans.

After the redistricting, longtime Democratic U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen announced that he would no longer seek reelection in the 9th District. Cohen’s primary challenger, Democratic state Rep. Justin Pearson, then was joined by state Sen. London Lamar in what became a four-person contest.

Republicans currently hold eight of the state’s nine congressional seats.

Memphis voters voice their dismay over redistricting

For decades Memphis, the most populous city in Shelby County, formed the base of its own congressional district. Now the county is split among three districts that extend outward like spokes into rural areas.

Lonzo Taylor, a retired postal worker and military veteran, said Black voters like himself have had their voices diluted.

“We only had one district in the whole state of Tennessee, and you don’t even want that to be fair? It’s just terrible,” said Taylor, 72. “I love this state, but I am very disappointed in our governor,” who called lawmakers into a special session for the redistricting.

Milla Meiman, 23, who voted early in the Democratic primary, said she did not realize the congressional map had changed until receiving a letter about it in the mail.

“It’s a drastic change to have your district sort of switched around like that,” said Meiman, who works part time at an ice cream shop and public library. Meiman added: “I think it’s a voter suppression tactic.”

Terrice Thomas, 45, an educator who votes for Democrats, had to learn a lot more about the candidates when she got switched from District 9 to District 8. She is concerned Memphis constituents could get overlooked.

“Is everybody going to have an equal say on what’s happening in their communities or even the people that you’re voting for?” Thomas said. “Are they going to really take into account the different areas and what makes us unique?”