Tennessee is a Southern state whose partisan divisions were once so predictable that ordinary citizens could recite them by heart (East Tennessee was Republican since the Civil War, Middle Tennessee was “Andrew Jackson Democratic”, and Western Tennessee was an extension of the Deep South (and, therefore, formerly Democratic)). Suburbanization around Nashville, combined with a general trend away from the Democrats in the South beginning with the Clinton Administration (it was newsworthy when former U.S. Senator Al Gore couldn’t carry his home state in the 2000 Presidential contest) and accelerating during the Obama Administration changed those partisan lines. Today, Tennessee is fairly solidly Republican, with Democratic strength generally limited to the core counties containing Nashville and Memphis.

This poll is for an open U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Lamar Alexander (who also was its governor between 1979 and 1987). 15 candidates have filed for this seat, but only three have cash on hand of at least 100K as of the last reporting date of June 30; therefore, those three were polled. Republican primary voters’ attitudes about wearing masks were also polled.

The poll can be found here.