Voting in Tennessee

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The policies governing voter participation are enacted and enforced primarily at the state level. These policies, which include voter identification requirements, early voting provisions, online voter registration systems, and more, dictate the conditions under which people cast their ballots in their respective states.

This article includes the following information about voting policies in Tennessee:

See Election administration in Tennessee for more additional information about election administration in the state, including voter list maintenance policies, provisional ballot rules, and post-election auditing practices.

Do you have questions about your elections? Looking for information about your local election official? Click here to use U.S. Vote Foundation’s election official lookup tool.

Voter registration

Eligibility and registration details

Check your voter registration status here.

To register to vote in Tennessee, an applicant must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of Tennessee, and at least 18 years old by the day of the next election.[1]

Prospective voters can register online, by mailing a voter registration application to the county election commission, or in person at a variety of locations including the county clerk’s office, the county election commission office, public libraries, and numerous state agencies. Registration must be completed 30 days before an election.[1]


In-person voting

Poll times

See also: State poll opening and closing times

In Tennessee, most polling places are open between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., but opening times can vary by county. All precincts close at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and 7:00 p.m. Central. The polls must be open a minimum of 10 hours and may be open for a maximum of 13 hours. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[2]


Voter identification

See also: Voter identification laws by state

Tennessee requires voters to present photo identification while voting.[3]

Voters can present the following forms of identification:

  • Tennessee driver’s license with photo
  • United States passport
  • Photo ID issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security
  • Photo ID issued by the federal or Tennessee state government
  • United States Military photo ID
  • Tennessee handgun carry permit with photo

The following voters are exempt from the photo ID requirements:

  • Voters who vote absentee by mail
  • Voters who are residents of a licensed nursing home or assisted living center and who vote at the facility
  • Voters who are hospitalized
  • Voters with a religious objection to being photographed
  • Voters who are indigent and unable to obtain a photo ID without paying a fee

Voters can obtain a free photo ID from the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security at any participating driver service center. In order to receive an ID, a voter must bring proof of citizenship (such as a birth certificate) and two proofs of Tennessee residency (such as a voter registration card, a utility bill, vehicle registration or title, or bank statement). Visit the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security's Voter Photo ID page for more information.[3]

Early voting

See also: Early voting

Tennessee permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.

Absentee/mail-in voting

See also: Absentee/mail-in voting

Tennessee voters are eligible to vote absentee in an election if they cannot make it to the polls on Election Day for one of the following reasons:[4]

“
  • The voter will be outside the county of registration during the early voting period and all day on Election Day;
  • The voter or the voter’s spouse is enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited college or university outside the county of registration;
  • The voter resides in a licensed facility providing relatively permanent domiciliary care, other than a penal institution, outside the voter's county of residence;
  • The voter will be unable to vote in person due to service as a juror for a federal or state court;
  • The voter is sixty (60) years of age or older;
  • The voter has a physical disability and an inaccessible polling place;
  • The voter is hospitalized, ill, or physically disabled and because of such condition, cannot vote in person;
  • The voter is a caretaker of a person who is hospitalized, ill, or disabled;
  • The voter is a candidate for office in the election;
  • The voter serves as an Election Day official or as a member or employee of the election commission;
  • The voter’s observance of a religious holiday prevents him or her from voting in person during the early voting period and on Election Day;
  • The voter or the voter’s spouse possesses a valid commercial drivers license (CDL) or the voter possesses a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) card and certifies that he or she will be working outside the state or county of registration during the open hours of early voting and Election Day, and has no specific out-of-county or out-of-state address to which mail may be sent or received during such time;
  • The voter is a member of the military or is an overseas citizen.[5]
 ”
—Tennessee Secretary of State

To vote absentee, a request must be received by county election officials no earlier than 90 days and no later than seven days prior to the election. The completed ballot must then be returned by the close of polls on Election Day.[4]


Local election officials

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Do you need information about elections in your area? Are you looking for your local election official? Click here to visit the U.S. Vote Foundation and use their election official lookup tool.

Voting rules for people convicted of a felony

See also: Voting rights for convicted felons

In Tennessee, people convicted of an infamous crime lose the right to vote, according to Article 1, Section 5 of the state constitution. Many felonies in Tennessee are classified as infamous crimes, so people convicted of a felony are often disqualified from voting and must petition for restoration of their voting rights. According to secretary of state's website,

“ Regaining the right to vote after a felony conviction is a two-step process. First, an individual must receive a pardon or have their full rights of citizenship restored. Second, the individual must meet requirements related to paying restitution and court costs, if any, and be current on any child support obligations, if any. A pardon or restoration of full rights of citizenship is required for all restorations.[6][5] ”


Mark Goins (R), the state coordinator of elections, wrote in a July 21, 2023, memo to local election officials that the two-part process for restoring voting rights applied in all cases, whether someone was convicted in Tennessee, another state, or in federal court. Goins' guidance followed the Tennessee Supreme Court's 2023 decision in Falls v. Goins. Click here for more information on restoring voting rights for people convicted of a felony in Tennessee.[7]

Voting rights for people convicted of a felony vary from state to state. In the majority of states, people convicted of a felony cannot vote while they are incarcerated but may regain the right to vote upon release from prison or at some point thereafter.[8]


Election agencies

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See also: State election agencies

Individuals seeking additional information about voting provisions in Tennessee can contact the following state and federal agencies.

Tennessee State Elections Commission

312 Rosa L. Parks Avenue
7th Floor, Snodgrass Tower
Nashville, Tennessee 37243-1102
Telephone: 615-741-7956
Email: tennessee.elections@tn.gov

U.S. Election Assistance Commission

633 3rd Street NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20001
Telephone: 301-563-3919
Toll free: 1-866-747-1471

Noteworthy events

2021

On June 12, 2020, several Tennessee organizations, including the Memphis A. Phillip Randolph Institute and the Tennessee State Conference of the NAACP, filed a motion in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee for a preliminary injunction that would bar enforcement of a Tennessee law requiring first-time voters to vote in person. The plaintiffs cited the COVID-19 pandemic as a justification for the injunction. On September 9, 2020, Judge Eli Richardson granted the plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction, temporarily suspending the first-time voter restriction. The state appealed that decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. On October 19, 2020, a three-judge panel of the Sixth Circuit unanimously upheld the lower court's order. The Sixth Circuit panel included Judges Karen Moore, Julia Gibbons, and Chad Readler. Writing for the court, Gibbons said, "[Disrupting] the new rules at this point poses significant risk of harm to the public interest in orderly elections. In this instance, there is no substantial harm to [election officials] in continuing to comply with rules they are currently following."[9][10]

However, on June 22, 2021, the same three-judge panel, at the conclusion of full briefing and oral argument, overturned the lower court's order. The panel split 2-1 with Gibbons and Readler forming the majority. In the court's opinion, Gibbons wrote:[11]

“ [Plaintiffs'] motion for a preliminary injunction [is] inextricably tied to the COVID-19 pandemic, a once-in-a-century crisis. In their memorandum in support of their motion for a preliminary injunction before the district court, plaintiffs recognized that "these are not ordinary times." While plaintiffs claimed that the first-time restriction burned all first-time voters simply by making it more difficult for them to vote, plaintiffs' central concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic ... Fortunately, because of advancements in COVID-19 vaccinations and treatment since this case began, the COVID-19 pandemic is unlikely to pose a serious threat during the next election cycle.[5] ”
—Judge Julia Gibbons

Moore dissented, writing, "At the very least, COVID-19 is 'capable' of continuing to burden this country through the next general election, and thus it is reasonable to expect that ... voters ... will find themselves in a similar position to the one that they found themselves in on November 2, 2020. ... At least until we are certain that COVID-19 will not be a significant threat during the next election cycle, the majority's threadbare proclamations are not enough to moot this case."[11]

2018

On October 25, 2018, Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins, a state court judge, ordered the Shelby County Election Commission to let voters with incomplete registrations cast regular ballots on Election Day after providing complete registration information. The commission had previously said that individuals voting on Election Day with incomplete registrations would be required to cast provisional ballots owing to logistical concerns with completing registrations at polling places on the day of the election. Jenkins said, "The harm to the applicant [of casting a provisional ballot instead of a regular ballot] far outweighs the harm to the Shelby County Election Commission. Voter registration is a key component to the election process." The suit that gave rise to the ruling was initiated by the Tennessee Black Voter Project and the NAACP. Bob Dul, an attorney for the Tennessee Black Voter Project, praised the ruling: "We can all agree that our democracy is strongest when everyone who is eligible can participate. I think this ruling is a huge victory for the citizens of Shelby County and we hope it will lead to even more civic engagement in Tennessee." Linda Phillips, Shelby County's election administrator, said, "We are extremely disappointed by the court’s ruling." In testimony earlier in the day on October 25, Phillips said, "It's possible under the format [attorneys for the Tennessee Black Voter Project are] suggesting for fraud to be committed."[12]

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See also

Elections in Tennessee


External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tennessee Secretary of State, "Register to Vote," accessed May 3, 2023
  2. ↑ Tennessee Code, "Title 2, Chapter 3, Part 2", accessed May 3, 2023
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Tennesse Secretary of State, "What ID is required when voting?" accessed May 3, 2023 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "tvid" defined multiple times with different content
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Tennessee Secretary of State, "Absentee Voting," accessed May 3, 2023
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  6. ↑ Restoration of Voting Rights, "Restoration of Voting Rights," accessed July 31, 2023
  7. ↑ Office of the Tennessee Coordinator of Elections, "Letter About Restoring Voting Rights," accessed July 31, 2023
  8. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Felon Voting Rights," April 6, 2023
  9. ↑ United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, "Memphis A. Phillip Randolph Institute v. Hargett: Preliminary Injunction Order," September 9, 2020
  10. ↑ United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, "Memphis A. Phillip Randolph Institute v. Hargett: Order," October 19, 2020
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, "Memphis A. Phillip Randolph Institute v. Hargett: Opinion," June 22, 2021
  12. ↑ Commercial Appeal, "Election commission ordered to let voters correct applications, vote normally on Election Day," October 25, 2018
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