We the People
are ready to VOTE. Here’s your guide to the key races and what you need to remember as you go to the polls
Today’s election is unlike any other in our lifetimes. h Voters will head to the polls in Memphis and across the state and nation to cast ballots for president, Congress, the state legislature and a host of local contests. And they’ll do it during the COVID-19 pandemic. h Here’s your guide to the top issues and races in Tennessee.
How to stay safe
Election officials from across the state have put in place measures to keep voters safe — including encouraging social distancing and mask wearing along with the use of single use stylus to use touch screen voting machines.
In addition, the state gave counties permission to establish procedures for allowing those who are COVID-19 positive to vote in person at special sites at county election commission offices. Check with your local county to see if one is set up.
Dr. William Schaffner, a professor at Vanderbilt University and expert in preventive medicine and infectious diseases, said the precautions limit the risk of transmitting COVID-19 but do not eliminate it altogether. He also said that polling places with lines partially outdoors help.
“This is different from political rallies or even going to religious services and the like,” he said. “People are stretched out. They’re out-of-doors. They’re wearing masks. I think the risk is very, very low.”
Lines that end up indoors may elevate the risk of transmission, Schaffner said.
“When you get indoors, the spacing continues to be very important,” he said. “Don’t crowd up.”
Is it too late to register to vote this time?
Yes. The registration deadline for Tuesday’s general election was Oct. 5. To check your registration status, visit govotetn.com.
How do I find where to vote?
Check your voter registration card for the location of your voting precinct. You also can go to tnmap.tn.gov/voterlookup, enter your information and find out where to vote.
When do the polls open and close?
In Memphis, polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.
Do I need to bring a photo ID to vote in Tennessee?
Yes. Voters in Tennessee must bring a valid photo identification card, which can include a driver’s li
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cense or photo ID issued by the state of Tennessee, a U.S. passport, a U.S. military photo ID or a Tennessee handgun carry permit that includes a photo.
College student IDS, city- or county-issued IDS and out-of-state photo IDS are not accepted.
What happens if I don’t bring a photo identification to my polling place?
You will have to cast a provisional ballot. You will then have two business days after the election to return to the election commission office to show a valid photo identification. After that, you’ll have to sign an affidavit, and a copy of your ID will be made to be reviewed by the counting board.
The presidency: Donald Trump vs Joe Biden
Tennessee is not a swing state and in statewide races has become increasingly Republican in recent years. The Cook Political Report puts Tennessee as a solid Republican state.
So the question is not necessarily whether President Donald Trump beats Democratic nominee Joe Biden but by how much and what the results say about the Volunteer State.
Trump won Tennessee by 26 percentage points in 2016 and carried all but three counties. In 2012, thenDemocratic President Barack Obama carried just four counties. No Democrat has carried Tennessee since President Bill Clinton in 1996, whose running mate, Al Gore, was a Nashvillian.
There’s been little presidential polling in Tennessee. But a Vanderbilt University poll in May had Trump holding a 51% to 42% lead over Biden. A Tableau/survey Monkey survey conducted Sept. 30-Oct. 27 had Trump leading 56% to 42%.
US Senate: Bill Hagerty vs Marquita Bradshaw
Unlike in 2018, there’s little question whether the Republican nominee is likely to prevail in the U.S. Senate race.
On Oct. 23, national polling firm Cygnal reported that Bill Hagerty was up 20 points over Marquita Bradshaw.
Hagerty, who was Trump’s ambassador to Japan and has his endorsement, is anticipated to easily win the seat being vacated by retiring Republican Lamar Alexander.
Bradshaw is a progressive Democrat from Memphis who surprised politicos in August when she rose to victory in the primary despite raising less than $25,000.
Bradshaw last week received Biden’s endorsement and has shown an ability to raise money, pulling in more than $630,000, according to campaign finance filings.
The question remains whether Hagerty and Trump’s margins of victory will be similar in Tennessee, or whether voters statewide will be inclined to split their tickets in the presidential and Senate races.
In 2018, then-u.s. Rep. Marsha Blackburn defeated former Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen by 10 points.
Bradshaw is campaigning as a much more progressive Democrat than Bredesen, who unsuccessfully attempted to also appeal to independents and Republicans.
On Oct. 23, national polling firm Cygnal reported that Hagerty was up 20 percentage points over Bradshaw.
State Senate: Two key races to watch
Republicans have a strong grip on the state Senate, where Democrats hold just five of 33 seats.
But the minority party has opportunities to take back two seats, requiring the GOP to spend heavily this year in Nashville and Chattanooga to try to bring their incumbents back.
Sen. Steve Dickerson, R-nashville, is up against former Oak Hill Mayor and Democratic candidate Heidi Campbell in District 20, while in District 10, Sen. Todd Gardenhire, RChattanooga, faces Glen Scruggs, assistant chief of the Chattanooga Police Department.
In Nashville in particular, advertisements have turned ugly.
Dickerson, a Never Trump moderate Republican, is being slammed by Campbell’s campaign over a federal lawsuit he settled regarding false government insurance claims filed through a pain management company he owned. She has also attacked him for skipping out on controversial votes.
The Senate GOP Caucus, meanwhile, has targeted Campbell for her support of a local group that has called for defunding the police, though Campbell said she is not in favor of doing so. They’ve also attacked her being charged years ago with driving under the influence.
Will Tennesseans elect their first openly LGBT state lawmaker?
Tennessee voters could make history by sending their first openly LGBT representative to the General Assembly.
Three men running for the state House are openly part of the LGBT community. It’s an unprecedented showing of representation in a Tennessee general election.
Torrey Harris in Memphis and Brandon Thomas in Smyrna are Democrats challenging incumbents.
In Knoxville, Eddie Mannis is a gay Republican on the ballot after successfully fighting an appeal by his primary opponent, who asserted he was not a bona fide member of the GOP. Mannis lost a bid for mayor of Knoxville last fall.
Harris and Thomas have previously run for the House. But this time they have better organized campaigns with more funding. Internal polling shows these House races to be competitive.
Can state Rep. John Deberry win as an independent?
In House District 90 in Memphis, there’s a rematch of the 2018 race — the Democratic primary, that is.
State Rep. John Deberry, the 26year representative, got removed from the ballot by the Tennessee Democratic Party. To keep his seat, Deberry is running as an independent in a heavily Democratic district against Torrey Harris, who lost narrowly to Deberry in 2018.
The Republican-controlled General Assembly earlier this year passed a law allowing candidates in Deberry’s position to run as an independent since the Democratic Party booted him off the ballot after the qualifying deadlines had passed.
Harris has focused on portraying Deberry’s socially conservative views as out of step with the district. Deberry says his views have not changed while he’s held the seat and consistently been reelected for more than two decades.
Will my absentee ballot be counted?
Tennessee has seen a record number of absentee and by-mail ballots this year.
If your absentee ballot was mailed in time to reach your local election commission by the close of polls today, it will be counted. The ballot has to be sent by mail. You cannot drop off your ballot at the county election office.
To check the status of your absentee ballot, visit tnmap.tn.gov/voterlookup.
The state and the U.S. Postal Service has identified 95 offices — one in every county — where voters can take a ballot on Election Day to mail and have it received in time. Ballots still require postage.
If you mailed your ballot but are unsure it arrived on time, you can go to your precinct and cast a provisional ballot. Election officials will count your absentee ballot if it arrived on time and discard your provisional ballot. If they don’t receive your absentee ballot by the times polls close, they will count your provisional ballot, according to a memo from the state’s elections coordinator.
When will we know election results?
In Tennessee, county elections officials can begin opening and counting absentee ballots on Election Day. State and local election officials will begin releasing results soon after the polls close at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT.
But voters should expect it to take longer for final results to come in, given the influx of mail-in ballots this year.
In a video posted to Twitter, Secretary of State Tre Hargett said a midnight deadline might be achievable for most of the state.
He said he expects most of the unofficial totals will be available across the state by midnight. Election results are not official until they are certified. This year, that is expected to take place Nov. 23.
“That’s optimistic in my opinion, we hope everything goes as planned. I believe county election officials are doing everything they can,” he said in the video.
‘Red mirage’ and ‘blue shift’
President Donald Trump’s attempts to sow doubts about mail-in voting, COVID-19 safety concerns and voting laws that vary state-tostate present a unique opportunity for two phenomena to play out in the 2020 election — a “red mirage” and “blue shift.”
Although the possibility of these events has existed in theory ever since mail voting started, it wasn’t until September the terms were applied to the upcoming election and popularized.
Experts define a “red mirage” as a situation in which election night tallies appear to show the president has been re-elected. But as mail-in votes are counted (in many states they can’t be counted until after the polls close), a “blue shift” will occur. Many experts think Democratic nominee Joe Biden could take over the lead in key states (and in the national popular election) as legitimate early votes are finally added to the tally.
The final vote count could come days, maybe even weeks, after Nov. 3 because of a record-breaking increase in voting by mail. Election experts across the political spectrum say the time it takes to tally votes shouldn’t worry voters, but rhetoric undermining the election should.
“The reason this is potentially dangerous is because you can imagine a situation where Trump tries to claim victory after early vote totals are in and claims that the other ballot counts are fraudulent,” said Rick Hasen, election law expert at the Irvine School of Law of University of California. “That’s where I think there’ll be a real question as to whether his supporters would accept election results as legitimate.”
This report was compiled by Duane W. Gang, Natalie Allison, Mariah Timms, Rachel Wegner, Sam Hardiman and Allie Clouse.