Early voting in the 2026 midterms starts soon, and it's been a whirlwind election year.
Between an intense Knox Countyprimary election in May, a historic Knox County general election in August and a somewhat predictable state primary in August, voters have had a lot on their plates.
It's all led up to the November general election, when major questions about the direction Tennessee - and the country - will be answered. Tennessee voters will choose a new governor and weigh in on members of Congress, the state legislature andamendments to the state constitution and Knoxville charter.
Early voting will be Oct. 14-29, and Election Day is Nov. 3. To hear from the candidates directly, check out the Knox News voter's guide.
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Here are seven storylines to think about as you prepare to vote.
Storylines to watch across Tennessee
November races are the first general elections since Lee's Education Freedom Scholarship Act passed
State lawmakers in 2025 passed Gov. Bill Lee's signature Education Freedom Scholarship Act, which uses public dollars to fund vouchers for students to attend private schools. It's become a major issue in elections up and down the ballot and, and Republicans are pretty divided about it.
The November election is the first time incumbent state lawmakers will have to answer to voters for supporting or opposing the vouchers, and the first time the program will factor into voters' choice for governor.
November races are the first since Republican lawmakers redrew Tennessee Congressional districts
When President Donald Trump asked Republicans in Tennessee to carve out a new Republican district in Tennessee, they made it happen. But what if they took so much of the existing reliably red districts that Democrats could move the needle?
It might not happen immediately, but there could be room for marginal gains for Democrats if Republican stronghold areas are now in the new District 9 instead of their old districts.
Trump plans to visit Middle Tennessee for an event Oct. 10, presumably to bolster candidates there.
Is Middle Tennessee a new battleground?
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is prioritizing two seats in Middle and West Tennessee through its "Red to Blue" program.
Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder is running in District 5 against Republican Charlie Hatcher, a dairy farmer and former Tennessee Agriculture commissioner. Tennessee Rep. Justin Pearson is running against Tennessee Sen. Brent Taylor in District 9, the former majority minority district that now spans 15 counties from outside Nashville to Memphis.
The organizational and funding support represents a significant shift in how the national party views those parts of Tennessee.
Does the "Your elected official isn't listening to you" claim work?
One strategy that Democratic candidates across the state have used is painting their Republican opponents as someone who refuses to listen to voters and constituents. They're accusing Republicans of not holding public or open town halls, not talking about issues they say voters actually care about and not being willing to debate.
This strategy has been used by both parties before, but 2026 will be a major test as anger with the federal government over the economy, immigration enforcement and the war in Iran continues to fester.
Storylines to watch in Knox County
Are Democrats' August inroads a preview for the November races?
Knox County Republicans won more seats than Democrats in the August general election, but Democrats picked up voters in every single race compared to 2022, including major gains in the race for county mayor.
Gains on the county level don't automatically translate to success in state and federal districts, but Democrats even tightening their margins in some of these races would be noteworthy.
Besides the two state House seats in Knox County that Democrats currently hold, only one Democratic candidate has come within five percentage points of defeating a Republican opponent in a Knox County General Assembly race since 2016: Greg Mackay, who lost the District 18 race by 3 points in 2018.
And on the Congressional level, no Democratic congressional nominee has reached 40% of the vote against Rep. Tim Burchett in Knox County since he was first elected to Congress in 2018.
This year, Burchett is up against Democrat Michaela Barnett, who has built up a district-wide infrastructure centered around reaching Republicans and independents as well as Democrats. Barnett has framed her race as a movement that's here to stay, not just a bid to unseat the incumbent congressman. If she loses but still gets a significant percentage of the vote, it could send a message for 2028.
Will Democrats finally flip District 18?
Tennessee House District 18 was created in after the 2020 census and includes the Cedar Bluff, Rocky Hill, Sequoyah Hills and Vestal neighborhoods, along with parts of South Knoxville surrounding South Doyle and Mount Olive.
Democrats had been eyeing the district, represented by Rep. Elaine Davis, because it started to lean blue in the 2022 midterms. But in 2024, when Democrat Bryan Goldberg challenged Davis for the first time, he only won three precincts: one at Sequoyah Elementary School, one at Bearden High School and one at Bearden Elementary School. He still got 46% of the vote overall, which is relatively competitive in Knox County.
Goldberg is trying again this year, and Davis handily defeated two primary challengers in August to advance to the general.
There's one major difference between 2024 and 2026: Trump isn't on the ballot this year. Voters who don't always participate in elections but wanted to support Trump in 2024 could've also voted for Davis. Plus the party that controls the presidency and Congress - in this case, Republicans - doesn't typically perform as well in midterms down the ballot.
But there is still the race for governor this year, and Republicans supporting Blackburn have leaned into national GOP messaging calling Democrats socialists. It's possible that could motivate the same voters from 2024 who could support Davis again.
Will Knoxville elections look different next year?
Voters who live or own property in Knoxville city limits will get to decide whether to condense who Knoxville elects city councilmembers.
Currently, the top-two vote-getters in the nonpartisan primary advance to the November runoff, even if one candidate gets a majority of the vote.
Voters will decide if the election should keep working that way, or if there should be no runoff if one candidate gets a majority in the primary. This option would align city council races with how the mayor and municipal judge are elected.
Allie Feinberg is the politics reporter for Knox News. Email: allie.feinberg@knoxnews.com; Reddit: u/KnoxNewsAllie
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: What's at stake in November? Seven key storylines to watch in midterms
