Tennessee 2026 elections

Contests on the board in Tennessee

The general-election contests the Ledger tracks in Tennessee, each with the raters' current call, the newest public polling and the money reported.

Candidate profiles from Tennessee

TN-9 · Tennessee

Brent Taylor

Tennessee state senator and former funeral-home owner from Shelby County, Republican nominee for the redrawn 9th District after a four-way primary.

Read Brent Taylor's recordThe race

TN-5 · Tennessee

Charlie Hatcher

Tennessee’s former Commissioner of Agriculture, a College Grove veterinarian and dairy farmer, nominated for the 5th District after unseating Andy Ogles.

Read Charlie Hatcher's recordThe race

TN-7 · Tennessee

Matt Van Epps

Tennessee’s 7th District congressman since December 2025: a West Point-trained Army special-operations pilot and former state commissioner seeking a full term.

Read Matt Van Epps's recordThe race

Key dates and deadlines

Read from the Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Elections on Sep 17, 2026. The authority's own page, linked beside each date, is the final word — confirm it before you act.

• Voter registration deadlineMonday, October 5, 2026, for the November 3, 2026 State and Federal General Election. The Secretary of State's 2026 calendar prints this one date and does not give separate online, mail or in-person cut-offs. To register, use online voter registration, or download and complete the Voter Registration Application and mail it or deliver it by hand to your county election commission; applications can also be picked up in person at county election commission offices, county clerk's offices, public libraries and register of deeds offices. The Secretary of State's FAQ says a person who does not have an ID issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security cannot register online but can still register by filling out a paper form. sos.tn.gov
• Early voting beginsWednesday, October 14, 2026. The Secretary of State's 2026 calendar gives the early voting period for the November 3, 2026 general election as Wednesday, October 14 – Thursday, October 29, 2026. sos.tn.gov
• Early voting endsThursday, October 29, 2026, the last day of the early voting period (Wednesday, October 14 – Thursday, October 29, 2026) printed in the Secretary of State's 2026 calendar. sos.tn.gov
• Deadline to request an absentee by-mail ballotSaturday, October 24, 2026. The Secretary of State's Guide to Absentee Voting says a registered voter may request an application for a by-mail ballot no earlier than ninety (90) days before the election and no later than ten (10) days before the election, and that, to be processed for the next election, the application must be received by the election commission no later than ten (10) days before the election. This is a received-by deadline for the request. The written request must be submitted, by mail or e-mail, to the local county election commission office by the tenth day before Election Day. sos.tn.gov
• Deadline to return an absentee by-mail ballotElection Day, Tuesday, November 3, 2026: you must mail your ballot in time for your county election commission to receive it no later than the close of polls on Election Day. This is a received-by deadline, not a postmark deadline. You must return your ballot by mail (USPS, FedEx, UPS, etc.); hand delivery or handing it to a poll worker during early voting or on Election Day is not permitted. sos.tn.gov
• Election DayTuesday, November 3, 2026 (State and Federal General Election). sos.tn.gov
• Polling place hours on Election DayElection Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. The Secretary of State's pages reviewed for this guide do not print a statewide opening or closing time. Its FAQ answers the question “When can I vote?” this way: find your early voting and Election Day polling place and hours in the GoVoteTN app. Its Election Day page likewise sends voters to the GoVoteTN lookup (Search by Voter or Search by Address) for their polling location and ballot information. Absentee by-mail ballots must be received no later than the close of polls on Election Day. sos.tn.gov

Official voting tools

These links go to the state's own tools. The Ledger does not collect registrations or ballots.

Rules to know

• What to bring

  Tennesseans voting early or on Election Day must bring valid photo identification with them to the polls. Any of the following IDs may be used, even if expired: a Tennessee driver license with your photo; a United States Passport; a photo ID issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security; a photo ID issued by the federal or Tennessee state government; a United States Military photo ID; or a Tennessee handgun carry permit with your photo. NOT acceptable: college student IDs; photo IDs not issued by the federal or Tennessee state government, including county or city issued photo IDs, such as library cards, and photo IDs issued by other states; and photo IDs issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security to non-U.S. citizens. First-time voters who registered by mail or Online Voter Registration and whose ID is expired must also present a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or other government document that shows the voter's name and address. Exempt from the photo ID requirement: voters who vote absentee by mail; residents of a licensed nursing home or assisted living center who vote at the facility; voters who are hospitalized; voters with a religious objection to being photographed; and voters who are indigent and unable to obtain a photo ID without paying a fee. The Secretary of State's FAQ adds that a voter who does not bring a photo ID votes a provisional ballot and then has two (2) business days after Election Day to return to the election commission office to show a valid photo ID, and that a free photo ID to vote can be obtained from the Department of Safety and Homeland Security at any participating driver service center. Read from: sos.tn.gov

• Who may vote by mail

  Tennessee requires a statutory reason to vote absentee by-mail. You can vote absentee by-mail if you fall under one of these categories: you are sixty (60) years of age or older; you will be outside the county where you are registered during the early voting period and all day on Election Day; you are hospitalized, ill or physically disabled and unable to appear at your polling place to vote; you are the caretaker of a person who is hospitalized, ill, or disabled (a physician's statement is not required for either of these two reasons); you or your spouse are a full-time student in an accredited college or university outside the county where you are registered; you reside in a nursing home, assisted living facility or home for the aged outside your county of residence; you are a candidate for office in the election; you are observing a religious holiday that prevents you from voting in person during the early voting period and on Election Day; you serve as an Election Day official or as a member or employee of the election commission; you will be unable to vote in-person due to jury duty; you have a disability and an inaccessible polling place; you or your spouse possess a valid commercial drivers license (CDL) or Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) card and you will be working outside the state or county of registration during the open hours of early voting and Election Day and have no specific out-of-county or out-of-state address to which mail may be sent or received during such time; you are a member of the military or are an overseas citizen; or you are on the permanent absentee list. To ask for a ballot, submit a written request by mail or e-mail to your local county election commission office by the tenth day before Election Day (Saturday, October 24, 2026); to be processed for the election, the application must be received by the election commission no later than ten (10) days before the election. The request must contain the voter's name, address of residence, social security number, date of birth, the address to mail the ballot, the election, the reason for voting absentee and the voter's signature, and, if applicable, a copy of the CDL containing the CDL number or the TWIC card; the absentee ballot request form helps make sure all required information is provided. An e-mailed request must be an attached document containing this information and your scanned signature. If information is missing, the county election commission returns the application so you can make corrections and resubmit it. The Secretary of State's FAQ adds that, unless you are on the permanent absentee voting register, enrolled in the Safe at Home program, or have previously voted in the county of registration, you must appear in-person to vote in the first election after you have registered by-mail or online. Read from: sos.tn.gov

• Early in-person voting

  No reason is needed to vote early: the Secretary of State's guide says that, unlike by-mail voting, which requires a statutory reason, a person may vote during the early voting period purely for the sake of convenience. For the November 3, 2026 general election the early voting period is Wednesday, October 14 – Thursday, October 29, 2026. To vote early, a person must appear in person at either the county election commission office or at a satellite voting location opened by the county election commission. Early voting is closed on holidays, but a person may vote early on any Saturday that falls during the period. A voter can also change his or her address of registration and vote in the same voting location. For details regarding times and early voting locations, contact the local county election commission office; the guide also links to early voting locations and hours for each county. The Secretary of State's FAQ says Tennesseans voting early or on Election Day must bring valid photo identification with them to the polls. Read from: sos.tn.gov

• Track your absentee ballot

  The Secretary of State's Absentee By-Mail Ballot Status Tracker tool allows voters to track the status of their absentee by-mail ballot. It is part of the Tennessee Voter Registration Lookup and Absentee Ballot Status Tracker at tnmap.tn.gov/voterlookup. The Secretary of State says this lookup allows voters to review their registration information, track absentee ballots, see early voting and Election Day information, and find their polling place. Read from: sos.tn.gov

• Felony convictions

  The Secretary of State's Restoration of Voting Rights guide says: if your felony conviction was on or before May 17, 1981, you only need to answer the appropriate question on the voter registration form and do not need to do anything else to get your voting rights restored; if your felony conviction was on or after May 18, 1981, you must get a court order to get your voting rights restored before you can register to vote. To get a court order you must meet all of the listed conditions, which include that you do not owe any restitution, that you do not owe court costs unless a court finds that you are indigent, and that you are current in all child support obligations. Voting rights cannot be restored after a conviction for any of the permanently disqualifying felonies that the guide lists by time period. Read from: sos.tn.gov

• Voters with print disabilities

  If you are eligible for an absentee ballot and you have a print disability that prevents you from reading or marking a paper absentee ballot, you may submit a Print Disability Absentee Ballot Request form to request an accessible ballot, and you may request that your accessible ballot be delivered electronically. “Print disability” means a disability that interferes with the person's ability to effectively read, write, or use printed materials, and includes blindness, low vision, and physical disabilities such as paralysis, that interfere with such abilities. Having a disability and an inaccessible polling place is also one of the listed reasons for voting absentee by-mail. Read from: sos.tn.gov

On the statewide ballot

Offices on the November 3, 2026 statewide ballot, per the Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Elections:

Governor · U.S. Senate · U.S. House · Tennessee Senate (odd-numbered districts) · Tennessee House

Questions and answers