By: Lydia Campbell
While the nation experienced a blue wave Tuesday night, Tennessee remained red, with Republican candidates winning elections up and down the ballot.
In the gubernatorial race, U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Republican, won the race for Governor of Tennessee. Blackburn received 955,259 votes, winning in the race against her Democratic opponent, Jerri Green, by a margin of 2.51%.
U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty, also a Republican, held on to his seat, receiving 1,138,407 votes and winning by a margin of 12.17%.
U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, a Republican, won the race for District 3 of the House of Representatives. He received 136,110 votes, winning by a margin of 17.38%.
Esther Helton Haynes of the Republican Party won the race for District 30 of the House of Representatives. Haynes received 11,611 votes, winning by a margin of 2.38%.
Jessica Fields and Tonya Sadler were voted to the Collegedale Board of Commissioners, with Fields receiving 1,161 votes and Sadler receiving 1,084 votes.
Constitutional Amendment #1 was adopted with 1,330,845 yes votes and 651,321 no votes, passing by 67.14%. The amendment changes Article 1, Section 15 of the Tennessee Constitution by allowing a court to hold a defendant without bail before trial when that defendant is accused of a number of specific crimes. The amendment requires courts to state on the record the reasons to grant or deny bail. The amendment is being advanced by the Tennessee General Assembly. It is championed in the House and Senate by bipartisan lawmakers House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) and Rep. Antonio Parkinson (D-Memphis).
Constitutional Amendment #2 was adopted with 1,334,067 yes votes and 664,715 no votes, passing by 66.74%. The amendment substituting the text in Article 11, section 28 of the Tennessee Constitution so that the Legislature is prohibited from imposing a State property tax. The amendment is championed by Rep. Tandy Darby (R-Hillsboro) and Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Brentwood).
Constitutional Amendment #3 was adopted with 1,526,306 yes votes and 480,508 no votes, passing by 76.06%. The amendment changes Article 1, section 35 of the Tennessee Constitution by deleting the section and substituting the section to clarify existing rights for crime victims and adding new rights. The amendment is sponsored by Sen. John Stevens (R-Huntingdon).
Voter Turnout
According to the Hamilton County Election Commission, there are 223,809 active registered voters and 125,941 total ballots cast, which is 56.27% of voters.