KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A competitive state House district race and a proposed change to how city voters pick six council seats highlight Tuesday's ballot in Knox County.
More than 163,000 registered voters in the county cast early votes over a 14-day period last month, and so far more than 7,500 absentee and nursing home votes have been cast.
With 318,311 active registered voters in Knox County, turnout shows that about 54% of the registered pool have now done their duty.
In East Tennessee, polls will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Elsewhere, such as on the Plateau, polls may open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. If you have any doubt, better check with your local election commission.
If you're in line Tuesday night when the polls close at 8 p.m., you'll still be able to cast your vote. Chris Davis, Knox County's elections chief, anticipates a busy day with potentially long lines at precincts, so you should be ready. Before work and after work likely will be the busiest times for actual voting Tuesday.
If you love local politics, pundits have identified two contests to watch. One is an actual race; the other is a city charter amendment question.
Residents of the very oddly constructed House District 18, mostly in West Knox County, have seen a spirited race between Republican incumbent Elaine Davis and Democratic challenger Bryan Goldberg. Davis first won the seat two years ago.
State Republican leadership made a point this summer of gathering to support Davis at a kick-off campaign event.
A website and campaign mailers distributed in September falsely portrayed Goldberg and his wife as failing to pay or falling behind on property taxes. The Goldbergs, however, had been victims of a thief, who took their tax payment check in the mail and altered it for his own benefit, Goldberg said.
The candidate said he routinely pays his taxes on time. He appeared on WBIR's "Inside Tennessee;" Davis said she could not.
Goldberg tried without luck to get the website taken down. He has filed suit in Knox County over the false accusations, naming Davis, the Tennessee House Republican Caucus and Parthenon Strategies LLC as defendants.
In 2022, Davis beat Democratic candidate Gregory Kaplan 54% to 46% to win her seat.
Knoxville City Council elections
While in Nashville, Davis led an effort that overturned the way Knoxville City Council used to choose candidates in six "district" seats. For the general council races, all qualified Knoxvillians in the city were able to cast a vote in each of the six district races.
That's no longer legal. The six districts now are to be picked only by people who live within the respective district boundaries.
To counter the state law change, City Councilman Andrew Roberto pushed through a city charter amendment question that would define six "regions", rather than districts, and that would allow all city voters in Knoxville to chose the winners for those region seats.
If the measure fails, the existing district-focused structure would remain in place for those six district races. Knoxville already, separately, has three at-large seats that are not affected by the law change.
The measure has drawn high-profile supporters and opponents. Only people who live in the city can vote on the measure.
Other races in play
One local state Senate race is on the ballot in Knox County. Republican incumbent Becky Duncan Massey is running for re-election to the District 6 Senate seat against Democratic challenger Domonica Bryan. Both appeared this fall on WBIR's "Inside Tennessee".
Several other state House races are in play, all with incumbent GOP lawmakers defending their seats.
Also on the ballot in the Knoxville area is Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett's seat, the 2nd Congressional District in Tennessee. The district covers several area counties.
Burchett is seeking re-election against Democratic challenger Jane George. George appeared on "Inside Tennessee" this fall but Burchett declined to take part in the format.
Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn is running against veteran state House member Gloria Johnson, a Knoxville Democrat. Johnson appeared on WBIR's "Inside Tennessee" to talk about her race, but Blackburn's camp didn't respond to invitations.
Also on the ballot: Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, is vying against Donald Trump, former U.S. president and a Republican, to become the next White House occupant.
This and that stats
October's early voter turnout proved a record in Knox County. It easily exceeded recent past performances, including 2020, which saw 153,197 early votes cast and 2016, which saw 135,760 early votes cast, Davis said.
There were 23,415 first-time Knox County voters.
More than 87,000 people aged 55 and older voted early in the county. That group tends more to be Republican voters. Some 57,000 voters ages 18 to 44 voted early, according to the Knox County Election Commission. Younger voters tend more to vote with the Democratic Party.
Planning for Election Day
Knoxville Area Transit has announced that all transit rides Tuesday are free. It's an effort to encourage people to go to their precincts to vote.
KAT will be operating its regular schedule during the day.
Also, the Tennessee Secretary of State's Office is making available a hotline if you have any questions as you go to the polls. It's 1-877-850-4959.
You can also text "TN" to 45995 to report suspicions of fraud or other election-related problems.
Some 2.13 million votes were cast last month during early voting across Tennessee, according to the Secretary of State's Office.
If you're voting Tuesday at your local precinct, remember that you have to bring valid photo identification, such as a driver's license.