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2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the nine U.S. representatives from the state of Tennessee, one from each of the state's nine congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections.

These elections were the first under Tennessee's new congressional map after redistricting was completed by the state government. During the general elections, Republican Andy Ogles flipped Tennessee's 5th congressional district, which was previously represented by Democrat Jim Cooper. With the number of Democrats in the delegation being reduced to just one, the 9th district's Steve Cohen, this represented the fewest Democrats sent to congress by Tennessee since the 41st Congress during reconstruction, an all Republican delegation.

Redistricting

The Tennessee Legislature drew new maps for Tennessee's congressional districts to account for the new 2020 census data. The Republican Party had a trifecta in the Tennessee Government at the time, giving them full control of the redistricting process. Legislators drew the maps for the state from late 2021 through early 2022. The maps that were eventually passed were widely criticized as partisan gerrymanders.

In particular, the redistricting split up the House district which had represented Democrat-heavy Nashville as long as Tennessee had been a state. The three districts that absorbed the city were then all won by Republicans, giving them 89% of Tennessee's U.S. House seats despite only getting 64% of the popular vote. This split also prevented urban voters from electing an African-American representative to the U.S. House, despite representing about 17% of the population.

Overview

District 1

The 1st district is based in northeast Tennessee, encompassing all of Carter, Cocke, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, and Washington counties and parts of Jefferson and Sevier counties, and includes the Tri-Cities region. The district was barely impacted by the 2020 redistricting cycle. The incumbent was Republican Diana Harshbarger, who was elected with 74.7% of the vote in 2020 and won re-election in 2022.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Disqualified

  • James Andrew Greene
  • Chuck Miller
  • Gary Wyatt
Endorsements

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared
  • Richard Baker, Republican candidate for this seat in 2020
  • Ahmed Makrom, nurse

General election

Predictions

Results

District 2

The 2nd district is located in eastern Tennessee, anchored by Knoxville. The district was barely impacted by the 2020 redistricting cycle. The incumbent was Republican Tim Burchett, who was re-elected with 67.6% of the vote in 2020 and won re-election in 2022.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

  • Tim Burchett, incumbent U.S. Representative (2019–present)

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
Disqualified
  • Marcus Lowery

Endorsements

Results

Independents

Candidates

Disqualified
  • Jeffrey Grunau

General election

Predictions

Results

District 3

The 3rd district encompasses most of the Chattanooga metro in eastern Tennessee, along with several suburban and rural areas near Knoxville and the Tri-Cities. The district was barely impacted by the 2020 redistricting cycle. However, under the new lines, the district no longer touches the border of Kentucky. The incumbent was Republican Chuck Fleischmann, who was re-elected with 67.3% of the vote in 2020 and won re-election in 2022.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Sandy Casey, Navy veteran
Disqualified
  • Dewitt Ferrell
  • Bradley Hayes
Withdrew
  • Kenny Morgan

Endorsements

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

  • Meg Gorman, nominee for this seat in 2020

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared
  • Thomas Rumba
  • Rick Tyler, white supremacist and perennial candidate (later decided to run for governor instead)

Disqualified

  • Amber Hysell

General election

Predictions

Results

District 4

The 4th district encompasses the southern part of Middle Tennessee, including Murfreesboro and Lynchburg. The district was barely impacted by the 2020 redistricting cycle, though it does take up more of the southern border of the state. The incumbent was Republican Scott DesJarlais, who was re-elected with 66.7% of the vote in 2020 and won re-election in 2022.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
Disqualified
  • Charles Dean Smith

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Wayne Steele, write-in candidate for this seat in 2018
Eliminated in primary
  • Arnold White

Results

Independents

Candidates

  • Clyde Benson, veteran
  • Tharon Chandler, journalist and perennial candidate
  • David Jones, engineer and Libertarian activist
  • Joseph Mayger
  • Mike Winton, perennial candidate

General election

Predictions

Results

District 5

The 5th district was previously centered on Nashville and the immediate surrounding suburbs, and it also used to contain Dickson and part of Cheatham County. The incumbent was Democrat Jim Cooper, who ran unopposed in 2020.

On January 25, Cooper announced he would withdraw his candidacy for re-election and refund all campaign contributions, citing the state legislature's move to split Davidson County into three congressional districts.

Under the new Republican redistricting map, the new 5th district shifted from D+7 to R+9 and contained only the southern part of Nashville, as well as portions of Wilson and Williamson Counties and the entirety of Maury, Lewis, and Marshall Counties. The 6th and 7th districts absorbed the eastern and western parts of Davidson county, respectively.

In the general election, Republican Andy Ogles defeated Democratic challenger Heidi Campbell. With Ogles' victory, he became the first Republican in 147 years to represent Nashville in the House of Representatives.

Heidi Campbell performed strongest in the district's portion of Davidson County, where she swept nearly every precinct. This success included winning the traditionally Republican stronghold of Forest Hills and maintaining comfortable margins in and around her hometown of Oak Hill, where she previously served as Vice Mayor and the first female Mayor. These areas largely overlap with Tennessee Senate District 20, which Campbell had represented since 2020.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
Disqualified
  • Justicia Rizzo
Withdrawn
  • Jim Cooper, incumbent U.S. Representative (2003–2023)
  • Odessa Kelly, executive director of Stand Up Nashville (candidate in the 7th district)

Endorsements

Results

Republican primary

Early in the cycle, the Tennessee Republican Party’s state executive committee removed Donald Trump-endorsed Morgan Ortagus, along with Robby Starbuck and Baxter Lee, from the ballot. The party invoked internal bylaws requiring candidates to have voted in three of the last four statewide Republican primaries, a move widely criticized by some as an effort by the local "establishment" to narrow the field. Andy Ogles emerged as the winner with 35.4% of the vote, defeating former State House Speaker Beth Harwell and retired Brigadier General Kurt Winstead.

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
Disqualified
Withdrew
  • Quincy McKnight, businessman and Republican primary candidate for Tennessee State Senate District 21 (candidate for Nashville mayor)
Declined

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Independent Candidates

Candidates

Declared
  • Derrick Brantley, business development consultant
  • Daniel Cooper, former Maury County Commissioner
  • Rick Shannon, veteran, author, pastor, and business owner

General election

Predictions

Polling

Results

The results were controversial, mainly revolving around the state's gerrymandering, which many experts believed was what allowed Ogles to win. There were also some controversies around Ogles himself, who later came under fire over disputes involving his career and education.

By county

District 6

The 6th district encompasses the eastern portions and suburbs of Nashville and extends across northern Middle Tennessee. It includes the cities of Hendersonville and Gallatin, as well as the eastern portion of Lebanon. The district continues eastward across the Cumberland Plateau, including the regional centers of Cookeville and Crossville, and reaches as far as Scott County, where East Tennessee begins.

After redistricting, it absorbed the western portion of Davidson County. The incumbent was Republican John Rose, who was re-elected with 73.7% of the vote in 2020 and won re-election in 2022.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • John Rose, incumbent U.S. Representative (2019–2027)

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Randal Cooper
Eliminated in primary
  • Clay Faircloth, pastor

Results

General election

Predictions

Results

District 7

The 7th district is centered in Middle Tennessee, anchored by significant portions of Nashville and its western suburbs. The district includes most of Franklin as well as the western half of Williamson County, along with nearby communities such as Ashland City, Pleasant View, Dickson, Springfield, and part of White House.

To the northwest, the district prominently includes Clarksville, one of the state's largest cities anchored by Fort Campbell.

Beyond that the district stretches southward to the Alabama border, encompassing a large swath of predominantly rural counties.

The incumbent was Republican Mark Green, who was re-elected with 69.9% of the vote in 2020 and won re-election in 2022. Green's district was significantly impacted by redistricting, as he now represented a more central part of Tennessee. The 8th district absorbed most of Green's constituents in the western portion of the state.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Mark Green, incumbent U.S. Representative (2019–2025)

Endorsements

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Odessa Kelly, executive director of Stand Up Nashville

Endorsements

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared
  • Steven Hooper, candidate for U.S. Senate in 2020

General election

Predictions

Results

Despite Green's comfortable win, with only 60% of the vote received, this was the worst he had performed since his 2018 election as a result of gerrymandering, where the new district included part of Davidson County.

By county

District 8

The 8th district encompasses rural West Tennessee as well as taking in the eastern suburbs of Memphis, including Bartlett, Lakeland, Germantown, and Collierville, as well as the cities of Jackson, Paris, and Dyersburg. After redistricting, it absorbed much of the 7th district's Western state territory. The incumbent was Republican David Kustoff, who was re-elected with 68.5% of the vote in 2020 and re-elected in 2022.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • David Kustoff, incumbent U.S. Representative (2017–present)
Eliminated in primary
  • Danny Ray Bridger Jr.
  • Gary Clouse, therapist
  • Bob Hendry, former Marine Corps infantry officer

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Lynnette Williams, perennial candidate
Eliminated in primary
  • Tim McDonald

Results

Independents

Candidates

General election

Predictions

Results

By county

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

District 9

The 9th district is based in Memphis. Redistricting left the 9th district intact, but it moved from having a 53% Democratic-leaning seat to a 43% Democratic-leaning seat after taking on some Republican-leaning suburbs and Half of Tipton County. The incumbent was Democrat Steve Cohen, who was re-elected with 77.4% of the vote in 2020 and re-elected in 2022.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Steve Cohen, incumbent U.S. Representative (2007–present)
Eliminated in primary
  • M. Latroy Alexandria-Williams, perennial candidate

Endorsements

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Charlotte Bergmann, candidate for this seat in 2012, 2014, and 2020
Eliminated in primary
  • Leo AwGoWhat, perennial candidate
  • Brown Dudley

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared
  • Dennis Clark, candidate for this seat in 2020
  • Paul Cook, candidate for this seat in 2014 and 2016
  • George Flinn, former Shelby County Commissioner and perennial candidate

General election

Predictions

Results

See also

Notes

Partisan clients<br />

References

External links

Official campaign websites for 1st district candidates

Official campaign websites for 2nd district candidates

Official campaign websites for 3rd district candidates

Official campaign websites for 4th district candidates

Official campaign websites for 5th district candidates

Official campaign websites for 6th district candidates

Official campaign websites for 7th district candidates

Official campaign websites for 9th district candidates