by Scott Couch, Nashville Sun, June 21, 2026 at 7:00 AM Updated Sun, June 21, 2026 at 9:13 AM Less than a month until the start of early voting and the first real indication of a battle in the Tennessee governor's race. Whoever wins the Republican nomination in August is expected to carry the day in November. The two frontrunners for the GOP nomination are U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn and 6-th District Congressman and former Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner John Rose.