田纳西州纳什维尔田纳西州纳什维尔(美联社)美国共和党参议员玛莎·布莱克本周三宣布，她将参加2026年田纳西州州长竞选，与美国众议员约翰·罗斯.
布莱克本的声明正式宣布了一段时间以来人们对唐纳德·特朗普总统盟友的预期。她毫不掩饰她打算竞选这个职位。
它将于2026年8月与特朗普的支持者罗斯举行共和党初选。他们将竞争共和党州长比尔·李的职位，比尔·李即将达到连续两届四年任期的上限。
布莱克本在2018年赢得了她的参议院席位，比民主党人菲尔·布雷德森(Phil Bredesen)高出近11个百分点，后者是一位受欢迎的前州长。这一胜利标志着代表该州的前共和党参议员向右转。去年11月，她以超过29个百分点的优势击败民主党众议员格洛丽亚·约翰逊赢得连任。
布莱克本于2002年首次当选美国众议院议员，他与茶党运动结盟，并定期出现在福克斯新闻频道。在此之前，布伦特伍德居民作为一名州议员在21世纪初帮助领导了反对田纳西州所得税提案的抗议活动。
在一则开场竞选广告中，布莱克本称赞特朗普，承诺在创造就业和能源生产方面发挥领导作用，并及时触及保守主题——例如，在教育方面增强父母的权能，定义“上帝创造的男孩和女孩”，以及非法驱逐该国的移民，“无论是乘坐飞机、火车还是飞船。”
“在他的前六个月，特朗普总统在让美国再次伟大方面取得了历史性的进展，但随着他将权力交还给各州，他将需要强大的保守派州长，他们可以将这场革命带回家，”布莱克本在一份声明新闻稿中说。“我正在竞选田纳西州的下一任州长，以确保田纳西州成为美国的保守派领袖。”
罗斯在3月份宣布竞选州长，同样在特朗普在过去三次总统选举中轻松获胜的州表达了对特朗普的强烈支持。特朗普在2024年以近30个百分点的优势赢得了田纳西州，李明博在2022年以32个百分点的优势击败了民主党对手。
布莱克本之前关于考虑竞选州长的声明吓跑了一些可能会参选的著名共和党人。
库克维尔的商人兼农民罗斯可以利用个人财富，他借给竞选团队500万美元，并在6月份从捐助者那里筹集了110万美元。
阿林顿的Cito Pellegra在共和党初选中加入了布莱克本和罗斯。
到目前为止，一些民主党人已经宣布或开设了竞选筹款账户。他们包括孟菲斯市议员雪莉·格林，孟菲斯社区倡导者卡尼塔·阿特沃特，音乐家亚当·迪奇·库尔茨和来自加拉丁的蒂姆·西尔。
Republican US Sen. Marsha Blackburn joins Tennessee race for governor
NASHVILLE, Tenn. --NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) —Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburnannounced Wednesday that she is entering the open Tennessee governor's race in 2026, setting up a primary clash withU.S. Rep. John Rose.
Blackburn's announcement makes official what had been expected for some time from the ally of President Donald Trump. She had made no secret that she was planning on running for the position.
It sets up a Republican primary clash in August 2026 against Rose who is also a Trump backer. They will be competing to replace GOP Gov. Bill Lee, who is hitting his limit of two consecutive four-year terms in office.
Blackburn won her Senate seat in 2018 by nearly 11 percentage points over Democrat Phil Bredesen, a popular former governor. That victory marked a rightward shift from previous Republican senators who has represented the state. She then won reelection against Democratic state Rep. Gloria Johnson by more than 29 percentage points last November.
First elected to the U.S. House in 2002, Blackburn aligned with the tea party movement and regularly appeared on Fox News. Before that, the Brentwood resident made a name for herself as a state lawmaker who helped lead the revolt against a proposed Tennessee income tax in the early 2000s.
In an opening campaign ad, Blackburn lauded Trump, promised leadership in job creation and energy production and hit on timely conservative themes — for example, empowering parents in education, defining “boys and girls the way God made them,” and deporting immigrants in the country illegally, “whether it takes planes, trains or starships.”
“In his first six months, President Trump has made historic strides in Making America Great Again, but as he sends power back to the states, he’s going to need strong conservative governors who can bring that revolution home," Blackburn said in an announcement news release. "I’m running to serve as Tennessee’s next governor to ensure Tennessee is America’s conservative leader."
Rose, who announced his bid for governor in March, likewise has voiced strong support for Trump in a state that Trump has easily won in the past three presidential elections. Trump won Tennessee in 2024 by nearly 30 points and Lee defeated a Democratic opponent in 2022 by 32 percentage points.
Blackburn’s prior statements about considering a bid for governor scared off some prominent Republicans who may have otherwise run.
Rose, a Cookeville businessman and farmer who can tap into personal wealth, lent his campaign $5 million and raised $1.1 million from donors through June.
Cito Pellegra of Arlington joins Blackburn and Rose in the GOP primary.
Several Democrats have announced or opened fundraising accounts for the race so far. They include Memphis city councilmember Sherri Green, Memphis community advocate Carnita Atwater, musician Adam “Ditch” Kurtz and Tim Cyr from Gallatin.
