Tennessee: who should earn your vote for Congress in 2026

Opinion · The paper’s scorecard

Tennessee: every race for Congress on the 3 November 2026 ballot, and how the candidates measure up against our standards.

Sitting and former members are scored on the same key votes, read from the official House and Senate roll calls; each vote links to the record. Candidates who have never served in Congress have no votes to score, and outside the battlegrounds we have not researched them, so they are marked as not scored. Where only one candidate could be measured, the mark rates that record on its own; it is not a verdict on the opponent. How the marks work · All states

U.S. Senate R+14

✓ Meets our standards: Bill Hagerty

Marquita Bradshaw

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Meets our standards

Bill Hagerty

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 20 key votes · total +3

✓Smaller government
✗Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
?Free speech
✓No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
✓Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (10)

Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted against the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. Source
Voted against the Inflation Reduction Act. Source

Against us (10)

Voted for the June 2026 bill adding about $70 billion for immigration enforcement. Source
Voted for the CHIPS Act's tens of billions in subsidies for semiconductor makers. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source

District 1 R+29

✓ Meets our standards: Diana Harshbarger

Kristi Burke

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Meets our standards

Diana Harshbarger

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 27 key votes · total +2

✓Smaller government
~Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✓No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
~Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (17)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (10)

Voted against the 2022 antitrust package funding merger enforcement with fees on the largest deals. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source

District 2 R+17

✓ Meets our standards: Tim Burchett

Michaela Barnett

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Meets our standards

Tim Burchett

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 27 key votes · total +2

✓Smaller government
~Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✓No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
~Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (17)

Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source
Voted for the Small Business Regulatory Reduction Act. Source

Against us (10)

Voted against the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted against the 2022 antitrust package funding merger enforcement with fees on the largest deals. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source

District 3 R+18

Leans our way: Chuck Fleischmann

Leans our way

Chuck Fleischmann

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 27 key votes · total +1

✓Smaller government
~Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
~No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
~Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (16)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (11)

Voted against the 2022 antitrust package funding merger enforcement with fees on the largest deals. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source

Anna Golladay

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

District 4 R+11

✓ Meets our standards: Scott DesJarlais

Victoria Broderick

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Meets our standards

Scott DesJarlais

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 26 key votes · total +3

✓Smaller government
✓Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✓No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
~Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (18)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (8)

Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which civil-liberties groups opposed as a limit on campus speech. Source
Voted for a further clean extension of FISA surveillance authorities in 2026. Source

District 5 R+10

No mark

Andy Ogles (R): incumbent lost renomination.

Charlie Hatcher

Republican

No congressional voting record; not scored

Chaz Molder

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

District 6 R+13

No mark

John Rose (R): incumbent retiring to run for governor.

Mike Croley

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Johnny Garrett

Republican

No congressional voting record; not scored

District 7 R+11

No mark

Darden Copeland

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Matt Van Epps

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 5 key votes · total -1

✓Smaller government
?Small business over giants
?Live and let live
?Light touch on tech
?Free speech
✗No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
?Checks on power
?Right to bear arms
?Hard on violent crime

With us (1)

Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (4)

Voted for a further clean extension of FISA surveillance authorities in 2026. Source
Voted against ending the emergency behind the tariffs on Canada. Source
Voted against the September 2026 resolution directing U.S. forces out of hostilities with Iran. Source

District 8 R+10

Leans our way: David Kustoff

Heidi Kuhn

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Leans our way

David Kustoff

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 26 key votes · total +1

✓Smaller government
~Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✗No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
✓Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (15)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (11)

Voted against the 2022 antitrust package funding merger enforcement with fees on the largest deals. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source

District 9 R+9

No mark

Steve Cohen (D): incumbent retiring.

Justin Pearson

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Brent Taylor

Republican

No congressional voting record; not scored

Photo credits. Official congressional portraits are works of the U.S. government and in the public domain. Others:

Matt Van Epps: House Creative Services, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (file)