The Tennessee delegation
congressional officials …
Tennessee has a relatively experienced and somewhat electorally stable congressional delegation.
Of the eleven 2022-2023 class members, only one is female, and ten are male, with no minority representation through the end of the year. Five are lawyers, several are business people, and two have medical degrees.
Vanderbilt University has conferred four degrees - the highest received by any delegation member, while the University of Tennessee has conferred two degrees.
One member of the Tennessee congressional delegation is a former combat veteran.
The average tenure for the delegation is only 3.7 terms, assuming everyone completes their service through the end of 2024. The longest-serving member has been in Congress for 19 terms.
Three members of the Tennessee delegation are in their first term.
When you look at these profiles, we have given each a letter grade for their effort this Congress, based on various factors, which you will find in What Is Thomas Looking For? These letter grades are probably pretty familiar to you if you have ever been a school student (we hope the answer to that is we all have!)
If you see a meager score for a particular member, it will probably be due to one or two key factors: ethics challenges or anti-democratic behavior.
Republicans have been hit hard on their lack of pushback on former President Trump and their support of election denying in the 2020 presidential campaign. The unanswered soaring deficit on their watch, the dismantling of allied relationships around the globe, and opposition to funding anti-authoritarian initiatives. The denial of climate change weighs heavily on us as well. We make no secret that transparency and Government in the Sunshine are vital to us, and we further argue that some have been awful stewards of this category. For example, seven of the 11 (more than half) Tennessee delegation members voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results the same evening as Trump supporters stormed the United States Capitol.
Democrats have been hit hard for their lack of progress on critical matters because they control the United States Senate and have a razor-close margin in the U.S. House of Representatives. They have not been innovative or necessarily insistent on finding rational, reasonable solutions to the problems plaguing the American public today. We want to see more and better.
Both have been dinged for being too partisan and not collaborative where evident. In our opinion, being too doctrinaire or an obstructionist to good government in the 21st century does not get one a good grade from Thomas.
We also indicate what we believe might be the outcome of these Members’ 2024 elections today. The overwhelming majority of House members were re-elected in 2022, and one of the two United States Senators is up for re-election this season.
Our prospect ratings fall into three categories:
Safe Bet - which means what it means. These members of Congress are running strong and look to be overwhelming prospects for re-election at this time. However, we reserve the right to re-categorize their chances if necessary.
It’s A Race - means this race is too close to call, and we can not reasonably predict who will win this seat.
Nudging - means the seat is leaning one way or another for this candidate. We have just a small number of current members of Congress in this category. Stay tuned!
So, would you like to meet these fascinating Tennesseans? If so, keep reading on!
what is thomas looking for?
There are no true vulnerable races for Thomas to watch in Tennessee for 2024.
the senators
Credit: US Senator Marsha Blackburn
United States Senator marsha blackburn (r)
Tennessee’s senior senator, Marsha Blackburn, is a first-term U.S. Senate member facing re-election in 2024. She serves on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee and the Veterans’ Affairs Committee. Married and the mother of two, Senator Blackburn graduated from Mississippi State University, is a former businesswoman, and one of the most consistently conservative members of the Senate.
Thomas Take: Running for Re-Election - Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: C
Credit: US Senator Bill Hagerty
United states senator bill hagerty (r)
Tennessee’s junior senator is serving his first term in the U.S. Senate. A former Ambassador to Japan in the Trump Administration, Senator Hagerty serves on the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, the Appropriations Committee, and the Rules and Administration Committee. A graduate of Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt Law, the Senator is married and the father of four.
Thomas Take: Not up for re-election in 2024
Thomas Rank: B
the representatives
Credit: US Rep. Diana Harshbarger
district 1 - u.s. rep. diana harshbarger (r)
Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger represents northeast Tennessee as a second-term member of the House. A former pharmacist, the Congresswoman serves on the Education and Labor Committee and the Homeland Security Committee. Married and the mother of one, Harshbarger graduated from East Tennessee State University and has her doctorate in pharmacy from Mercer University.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
district 2 - U.S. Rep. tim burchett (r)
Congressman Tim Burchett is serving his third term in the House, representing the Knoxville area. A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Burchett is married and the father of one. He serves on the Foreign Affairs and Transportation committees.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
Credit: US Rep. Tim Burchett
Credit: US Rep. Chuck Fleischmann
District 3 - U.S. Rep. chuck fleischmann (r)
Representing the east Tennessee area around Chattanooga and Oak Ridge, Congressman Chuck Fleischmann is serving his seventh term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Fleischmann serves on the Appropriations Committee. Married and the father of three, he holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois and a law degree from the University of Tennessee.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
District 4 - U.S. Rep. scott desjarlais (r)
Representing an area that stretches through eastern and middle Tennessee, Congressman Scott DesJarlais is a seven-term member of the House who serves on the Agriculture and Armed Services committees. The married father of three has his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of South Dakota.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
Credit: US Rep. Scott DesJarlais
Credit: US Rep. Andy Ogles
district 5 - U.S. rep. andy ogles (R)
This is an intriguing seat in that freshman Congressman Andy Ogles is being questioned on academic and business credentials he has offered during his campaign. Shades of expelled New York Republican Congressman George Santos? The Congressman represents the Nashville capital region in the House and serves on the Financial Services Committee. He has an undergraduate degree from Middle Tennessee State University, is married, and is the father of three.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: F
district 6 - U.S. rep. john rose (r)
Former businessman and now Congressman for the middle Tennessee district he has represented for three terms, John Rose serves on the Financial Services Committee. He has a law degree from Vanderbilt University, a Master’s degree from Purdue University, and an undergraduate degree from Tennessee Technological University. He is married and the father of three.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
Credit: US Rep. John Rose
Credit: US Rep. Mark Green
district 7 - U.s. Rep. mark green (r)
Former President Donald Trump nominated Mark Green to be his Secretary of the Army but withdrew from consideration due to some controversial statements. He was elected to the first of his three terms in 2018 to represent Tennessee’s middle and western regions. Green, who served in the Army with combat duty in Afghanistan and Iraq, graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point. He has a graduate degree from the University of Southern California and a medical degree from Wright State University. Green announced earlier this year that he was planning to retire from Congress but then changed his mind on February 29th and announced that he is running for re-election. The Congressman chairs the Homeland Security Committee and serves on the Foreign Affairs Committee. He is married and the father of two.
Thomas Take: Running for Re-Election in 2024 - Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
district 8 - U.s. Rep. David Kustoff (r)
Four-term member David Kustoff represents western Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives. A member of the Ways and Means Committee, the Congressman is married, the father of two, and holds an undergraduate and law degree from the University of Memphis.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Republican
Thomas Rank: D
Credit: US Rep. David Kustoff
Credit: US Rep. Steve Cohen
district 9 - U.s. Rep. steve cohen (d)
Representing the west Tennessee area around Memphis, Congressman Steve Cohen is a nine-term member of the House of Representatives. He serves on the Judiciary, Natural Resources, and Transportation and Infrastructure committees. A graduate of Vanderbilt University with a law degree from the University of Memphis, Cohen is not married.
Thomas Take: Safe Bet Democrat
Thomas Rank: B