Tennessee Sen. Blackburn wins Republican primary for governor, defeating fellow Trump ally

U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn won Tennessee's Republican primary election for governor, making her the heavy favorite in the November general election.

U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn won Tennessee's Republican primary ‌election for governor, U.S. media projected on Thursday, making her the heavy favorite in the November general election.

In a battle between two of President Donald Trump's closest allies in Congress, Blackburn, 74, defeated U.S. Representative John Rose, 61. ‌They ran to replace two-term Republican Governor Bill Lee, who is leaving office because of term limits. Memphis ‌City Councilor Jerri Green won the Democratic nomination, U.S. media projected.

The governor's office in Tennessee, a state Trump won by nearly 30 percentage points in 2024, is widely expected to remain in Republican hands. Blackburn, who spent 16 years in the U.S. House of Representatives ⁠before ​entering the Senate in 2019, ⁠led Rose by comfortable double-digit margins for much of the race, according to opinion polls.

The Tennessee primary election also featured the first ⁠U.S. House contest since the Republican-controlled state redrew its congressional map to dismantle a majority-Black Memphis district, currently represented by Democrat ​Steve Cohen. He chose not to seek reelection to the seat, which independent political analysts now rate ⁠as safe Republican.

State Representative Justin Pearson, who was backed by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and more than a dozen other progressives in Congress, ⁠secured ​the Democratic nomination for the district on Thursday, U.S. media projected. Pearson drew national attention in 2023 when he and fellow Democratic state Rep. Justin Jones were expelled from the Tennessee House by the Republican ⁠majority after participating in a gun-control protest on the House floor following a school shooting in Nashville. Both were ⁠quickly reinstated by local officials.

Pearson ⁠will be opposed by Republican State Senator Brent Taylor, who was endorsed by Trump and prevailed in a field of four candidates, U.S. media projected.