Murfreesboro, Tennessee sample ballot 2026

Chief Operations Officer of Rutherford County Area Habitat for Humanity and past president of the Murfreesboro Rotary Club, per the Murfreesboro Post and WGNS. Defeated incumbent Mayor Joe Carr and Commissioner Craig Harris in the May 5 Republican primary after two prior runs for the office, per WGNS. Runs unopposed on the August 6 county general ballot.

Rutherford County Sheriff's Office lieutenant with a 28-year career that began at age 20 as a detention officer, spanning patrol, narcotics, interstate crime operations and K9 units, per his campaign site.

Marquita Bradshaw is a tenth-generation South Memphis resident and executive director of Sowing Justice, an environmental justice nonprofit, per the campaign site. The campaign site says her career has focused on environmental health, workers' rights, economic opportunity and public accountability, and describes her as the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Tennessee.

Robert Jones is a small business owner and nonprofit executive director in Jonesborough, Tennessee, per the campaign site. He holds an MBA from East Tennessee State University, a master's degree in military history from Austin Peay State University and a doctorate in classics from the University of Newcastle, per the campaign site. The campaign site says he will not accept campaign donations and that money will not buy his support.

Yoshi D. Matthews earned a bachelor's degree in business with an accounting concentration from the University of Phoenix and is pursuing a master's in accountancy, per the campaign site. She founded the nonprofit FTP Nonprofit and has experience working with the public and with individuals with disabilities, per the campaign site.

Marsha Blackburn is Tennessee's senior U.S. senator, elected in 2018 as the first woman the state has sent to the Senate, per her campaign site. She entered public service in 1995 as executive director of the Tennessee Film, Entertainment and Music Commission, won a Tennessee State Senate seat in 1998 where she led a grassroots campaign against a proposed state income tax, and later represented Middle and West Tennessee in the U.S. House. She is the Republican nominee for governor, having won the August 6 Republican contest with 43.55% (311,328 votes) in a three-way field, per the Tennessee Division of Elections.

• Voted yes on the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act, setting online safety and privacy requirements for platforms used by minors, which passed the Senate 91-3 in July 2024. Supported
• Voted no on the Respect for Marriage Act, legislation repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and requiring recognition of marriages that were valid where performed, which passed the Senate 61-36 in November 2022. Opposed
• Voted no on confirming Ketanji Brown Jackson as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, who was confirmed 53-47 in April 2022. Opposed

Jerri Green is an attorney who represents District 2 on the Memphis City Council, elected in November 2023, and who the city's official council roster also lists as Shelby County's Chief Public Defender. She previously ran the Community Legal Center, which provides legal services to Memphians who cannot afford them, and served Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris as senior policy advisor and deputy chief of staff, where her work included a free gun-lock-by-mail program and a living wage for county employees, per the council roster and her campaign site. She is the Democratic nominee for governor, having won the August 6 Democratic contest with 69.05% (244,194 votes) in a five-way field, per the Tennessee Division of Elections.

Hatley grew up in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and started his first business at age twelve, opening his first retail store at eighteen, per the campaign site. He has built nine companies over 30 years, creating about 750 Tennessee jobs across manufacturing, industrial, retail and hospitality sectors, and holds 11 patents, per the campaign site. His company is described on the site as the top hot tub manufacturer in America, per the campaign site.

Lauren Pinkston is an independent candidate for Tennessee governor and former Lipscomb University professor. Her campaign presents a nonpartisan alternative focused on education, democracy, health care, public trust, and building a broader coalition outside the major-party primary system.

Robert C. Vick, whose certified name prints with the middle initial, is an independent candidate for Tennessee governor and educator. His campaign presents a faith-centered, independent message focused on education, families, public safety, and leadership outside the Republican and Democratic primary contests.

Misam Abidi, a Pakistani-American businessman with a background in retail, banking and emerging technology, is running as an independent for Tennessee governor, per his campaign site. His campaign describes itself as being about restoring balance between institutions and the citizens they serve, not left versus right.