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Bill Lee (Tennessee politician)

William Byron Lee (born October 9, 1959) is an American businessman and politician who has served since 2019 as the 50th governor of Tennessee.[1][2] A member of the Republican Party, Lee was president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Lee Company, a business operated by his family, from 1992 to 2016.[3]

Bill Lee
50th Governor of Tennessee
Assumed office
January 19, 2019
LieutenantRandy McNally
Preceded byBill Haslam
Chair of the Republican Governors Association
Assumed office
December 7, 2023
Preceded byKim Reynolds
Personal details
Born
William Byron Lee

(1959-10-09) October 9, 1959 (age 64)
Franklin, Tennessee, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Carol Ann Lee
(m. 1984; died 2000)

(m. 2008)
Children4
ResidenceGovernor's Mansion
EducationAuburn University (BS)
Signature

In 2017, Lee described himself as a social conservative.[4] As governor, he has signed bills to ban abortion in Tennessee, mask mandates, and ranked-choice voting; to allow guns to be carried without a permit, create school voucher programs, and increase penalties for protest-related offenses. Lee signed Tennessee's "bathroom bill",[5] as well as a bill that assures continued taxpayer funding of faith-based adoption agencies that exclude LGBT people for religious reasons,[6] and the Adult Entertainment Act, which banned drag shows in public until a federal court ruled it unconstitutional.[7]

Early life and career edit

William Byron Lee was born on October 9, 1959. He was raised on his family's 1,000-acre (400 ha) cattle farm started by his grandparents in Franklin, Tennessee, the Triple L Ranch; the family raises Hereford cattle.[8][9][10] Lee is a seventh-generation Tennessean.[11]

After graduating from Franklin High School in his hometown,[12] Lee entered Auburn University in 1977 and graduated in 1981[13] with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering.[9] In college, Lee was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order, a fraternity known at the time for its use of Confederate imagery, and a photo printed in the university's 1980 yearbook shows Lee in a Confederate military uniform at the fraternity's "Old South" party.[14] In 2019, after his attendance came to light, Lee expressed regret for his participation: "I never intentionally acted in an insensitive way, but with the benefit of hindsight, I can see that participating in that was insensitive and I've come to regret it."[13]

Lee was named president and CEO of his family's home services and construction company, Lee Company, holding the position from 1992 until 2016.[9][4] He briefly served as chairman.[4]

Personal life edit

Lee lives in Fernvale with his second wife, Maria, whom he married in October 2008.[15] His first wife, Carol Ann, died in 2000 in a horseback riding accident.[16][17] After her death, Lee took extended time off from his construction company to raise his four children.[9]

Lee attends Grace Chapel Church in Leiper's Fork.[4]

Lee previously served as a member of the board of trustees of Belmont University,[when?] chairman of the YMCA of Middle Tennessee,[when?] president of the Associated Builders and Contractors,[when?] and a board member of the Hope Clinic for Women and the Men of Valor Prison Ministry.[when?][9]

Gubernatorial elections edit

2018 edit

 
Final results by county in 2018:
  Bill Lee
  •   80–90%
  •   70–80%
  •   60–70%
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  •   50–60%
 
Bill Lee at his campaign event in 2018

In April 2017, Lee announced his candidacy in the 2018 election for governor of Tennessee.[4] A self-described social conservative, he also targeted pro-business Republicans.[4] In the Republican primary election, Lee faced Congresswoman Diane Black, Knoxville businessman and former Tennessee Economic and Development Commissioner Randy Boyd, and state House speaker Beth Harwell.[4][18] Originally considered a long shot, Lee rose in the polls as Boyd and Black launched negative advertising against each other.[2][19] He won the August 2 primary with 291,414 votes (36.8%) to Boyd's 193,054 (24.3%), Black's 182,457 (23.0%), and Harwell's 121,484 (15.3%).[20]

Lee defeated former Democratic Nashville mayor Karl Dean in the November 6 general election,[21] receiving 1,336,106 votes (59.6%) to Dean's 864,863 (38.6%).[22] This marked the first time since 1982 that a candidate from the incumbent U.S. President's party was elected governor of Tennessee. This is also the first time that Republicans won three consecutive gubernatorial elections in the state, and the first time that a Republican was elected to succeed another Republican.

As of 2024, this election had the largest number of candidates (28) in a statewide election in U.S. history; the previous record was the 2016 United States presidential election in Colorado. This large surge in candidates was mostly due to the Libertarian Party of Tennessee's protest of the state's party affiliation and ballot access laws.[23]

2022 edit

 
Final results by county in 2022:
  Bill Lee
  •   80–90%
  •   70–80%
  •   60–70%
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  •   50–60%

In September 2020, Lee announced his candidacy for reelection for 2022.[24] He was unchallenged in the Republican primary[25][26] and endorsed in August 2021 by Donald Trump.[27]

In the November 8 general election, Lee was reelected, receiving 1,129,390 votes (64.9%) to Democratic nominee Jason Martin's 572,818 (32.9%).

During the general election, Lee flipped reliably Democratic Haywood County, home to Brownsville. It is one of only two remaining counties in Tennessee, along with Shelby County, with a majority African-American population. Haywood County has not voted Republican on a presidential level since 1972.

Voter turnout for the 2022 midterm elections in Tennessee was the lowest it has been in nearly a decade, with only 38.57% of Tennessee's registered voters turning out. The last time turnout was this low in Tennessee was in the 2014 midterm elections. This turnout was far below the 2020 presidential election in Tennessee, which saw a turnout of 68.6%.[28][29]

Lee was sworn in on January 21, 2023.

Tenure as governor edit

 
Governor Bill Lee taking the oath of office.

Lee was sworn in on January 19, 2019,[2] and delivered his first State of the State address to the Tennessee General Assembly in March 2019.[30]

Abortion edit

In January 2020, Lee proposed a bill to ban abortion as early as six weeks into pregnancy.[31][32][33] The legislation was among the nation's strictest abortion bans, and was similar to six-week abortion bans that were blocked by courts in Mississippi, Ohio, and other states.[34][35] Passed in the final hours of the General Assembly 2020 session on a party-line vote, it was challenged in federal court by Planned Parenthood and the ACLU.[36][37] Lee signed the bill into law in July 2020.[35] A federal judge immediately blocked its enforcement because it violated Supreme Court precedent, such as Roe v. Wade, which prohibits undue burdens on pre-viability abortions.[34]

After Roe v. Wade was overturned, Lee supported Tennessee's near-total ban on abortion, which provides no exception for rape, incest, or the mother's health, except in cases of serious bodily harm to the mother.[38]

Health care and leave edit

Lee opposes the expansion of TennCare, the state's Medicaid program, as allowed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.[39] As governor, he has rejected proposals to expand TennCare.[40] Lee has supported calls from dentists to extend TennCare to pregnant women who need dental care.[41]

In January 2020, Lee signed an executive order effective March 1, 2020, that offered state employees three months' paid leave for new parents and caregivers of sick relatives. He called it "one of the most cost-effective investments in the families of our state employees in recent history".[42]

Budget and economy edit

In 2019, Lee proposed repealing Tennessee's 10% amusement tax on gym, fitness center, and health club fees, arguing that the tax discourages Tennesseans from being physically active. If enacted, the repeal would reduce state revenues by around $10 million.[43]

In September 2020, Lee supported a Tennessee delegation that traveled to Beijing to enhance trade and economic linkages between the state and the People's Republic of China.[44]

Education edit

In a March 2019 "State of West Tennessee" address, Lee proposed creating more charter schools and that the state use $25 million to help traditional public schools when they lose students.[45] In his February 2020 "state of West Tennessee" address, he proposed investing $70 million to equip teachers with professional development, materials, and other tools to help increase the state's literacy rate.[46] Lee has also promoted the GIVE program, which prioritizes learning opportunities in rural counties and enhances career and technical education statewide.[47]

In April 2019, Lee announced that Tennessee would temporarily reinstate paper-based assessments for students taking the TNReady test, an annual statewide assessment, during the 2019–20 school year.[48]

Lee supports charter schools.[49] In May 2019, he signed into law a school voucher bill that created a program to provide public funds to families for private school tuition and costs, starting in the 2020–21 fiscal year,[50] but a judge ruled the program unconstitutional in May 2020, before it could go into effect.[51] Of $64 million in discretionary COVID-19 relief funding for education that went to his office, Lee sent $10 million to charter schools, including $4.4 million to launch new charters.[52]

In July 2019, Lee signed a bill into law that calls for school districts across the state to establish threat assessment teams to address potential threats to school safety.[53]

In February 2020, Lee proposed a $117 million investment to increase teacher salaries and a $250 million endowment to address mental health in K-12 education.[54]

Race relations and Floyd protests edit

In July 2019, Lee signed an order proclaiming Nathan Bedford Forrest Day, as required by Tennessee law, celebrating Forrest, a famous Confederate general and the first Grand Wizard of the white supremacist group the Ku Klux Klan.[55] The legislature repealed this requirement in June 2020.[56] In December 2019, Lee proclaimed December 1 Rosa Parks Day, to commemorate the start of the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott.[57]

In May 2020, after Minneapolis police murdered George Floyd, Lee condemned the officers involved, saying, "police brutality is not law enforcement".[58] On May 30, 2020, an "I will breathe" protest was held in Nashville in protest of Floyd's murder. During the protest, a man set fire to the Davidson County Courthouse; the building was not severely damaged.[59] In response, Lee mobilized the National Guard in Nashville, saying the protests had taken "a violent, unlawful turn".[60]

In August 2020, Lee signed into law a bill[61] increasing the severity of penalties for a number of protest-related offenses. One notable change[62] is that it reclassifies camping on state property, after being warned of trespass, from a misdemeanor to a felony offense punishable by up to six years in prison. This means that anyone convicted of the act will also lose their right to vote, as convicted felons in Tennessee are disfranchised.[63]

Refugee resettlement edit

In December 2019, after the Donald Trump administration allowed states to halt refugee resettlement in their states, Lee declined the offer (making Tennessee one of a handful of Republican-led states to do so) and announced that Tennessee would continue to accept refugees.[64][65][66] Lee's decision was opposed by Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally and Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives Cameron Sexton.[65] During a 2020 trip to the Tri-Cities, Lee was met with protests from opponents of refugee resettlement.[67]

Capital punishment edit

Lee supports capital punishment, and Tennessee has executed seven people since resuming executions in 2018.[64]

One notable person executed under Lee is Nicholas Todd Sutton. He was sentenced to life after taking 3 lives from 1979 to 1980. While in prison, he saved one corrections officer's life, protected two others,[68] and converted to Christianity.[69] In 1986, Sutton took the life of another prisoner after he threatened to kill Sutton, who was then sentenced to death.[70] In February 2020, he was executed after Lee denied clemency.[71]

In 2022, Lee set a temporary moratorium on Tennessee's death penalty, citing concerns about botched executions.[72]

Guns edit

In 2019, with the support of Republican state legislators, Lee loosened Tennessee's handgun law, allowing "concealed-carry-only" handgun permits to be obtained without requiring applicants to show an ability to fire a weapon.[73] In April 2021, Lee signed into law a permitless carry bill; the legislation allows most adults 21 and older (as well as military personnel ages 18–20) to carry handguns (open and concealed) without a background check or required training. It also increased the penalty for unlawful use of a firearm and obtaining an illegal firearm.[73] The bill, which Lee also supported the previous year,[73][74] was supported by the National Rifle Association and opposed by law enforcement organizations, such as police chiefs, sheriffs and prosecutors.[73]

After the Covenant School shooting in Nashville on March 27, 2023, Lee initially did not call for any gun control, saying: "There will come a time to discuss and debate policy. But this is not a time for hate or rage. That will not resolve or heal."[75] Lee said that his wife Maria was close friends with two of the shooting victims and one of them, Cindy Peak, had been expected for dinner at the governor's mansion on the day of the shooting.[76]

Four days after the shooting, with large protests in the state calling for reforms, Lee declined to explicitly say whether he would support gun control measures but did say that "individuals who are a threat to themselves or to others shouldn't have access to weapons."[77] In the wake of the scandals around the 2023 Tennessee House of Representatives expulsions, which occurred after protests in favor of gun control, Lee signed an executive order on April 11 strengthening background checks for gun purchases and also called for the state legislature to pass an "order of protection law".[78]

On August 8, 2023, Lee officially called for a special session of the General Assembly to be held on August 21 to focus on public safety in response to the shooting.[79][80]

2020 presidential election edit

After Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on September 18, 2020, several weeks before the presidential election, Lee supported Trump's nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to fill the vacant seat, citing his position on abortion.[81][82]

After Joe Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 presidential election, Lee was one of many Republican officials nationwide and in Tennessee who refused to acknowledge Biden's victory amid Trump's false claims of fraud.[83][84] Biden won a clear victory in both the popular and the electoral vote,[84] but Lee refused to recognize Biden as president-elect even after the election had been called,[85] after the presidential transition had formally begun,[86] and after the electoral college had voted, formalizing Biden's victory.[87]

On January 8, 2021, two days after a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol in a bid to disrupt the counting of the electoral votes and keep Trump in power, Lee condemned the riot and acknowledged Biden as president-elect.[83][88][89]

Social issues edit

Lee identifies as a social conservative.[4] He emphasized his Christian faith, creating an office devoted to faith-based initiatives, and declared October 10 an official voluntary day of prayer and fasting.[64]

LGBT issues edit

Lee supports allowing religious foster care and adoption agencies to prohibit same-sex married couples from adopting children.[90] In January 2020, he signed into law a bill that assures continued taxpayer funding of faith-based foster care and adoption agencies that exclude LGBT families and others based on religious beliefs. Lee and supporters of the legislation framed the bill as a "religious liberty" bill that would shield organizations from potential lawsuits hostile to the group's religious beliefs.[6][91][92] Nike and Amazon released statements opposing the bill.[93]

On March 26, Lee signed legislation banning transgender athletes from participating in sports opposite to their biological sex, making Tennessee the third state to do so.[94] In May 2021, he signed a bathroom bill that prohibited transgender people from accessing public school bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity.[5]

In May 2021, Lee signed legislation that forces businesses who serve transgender customers equally with restrooms to display warning signs that they do so.[95] LGBT activists, Democrats, and some Republicans, criticized the bill as an attempt to shame and harm businesses.[96][95] Many businesses and business leaders threatened to leave Tennessee in protest of these bills, including Nissan North America, Amazon, Dell, Pilot, Mars PetCare, and Warner Music Group, and Republican transgender business leader Jennifer Pritzker.[97] The American Civil Liberties Union sued to stop the law,[98] and in July 2021, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the law, finding that it violated the First Amendment.[99]

On February 27, 2023, Lee declared that he would sign the Adult Entertainment Act, which bans public drag performances; the first violation of the law would be a misdemeanor, while the second would be a felony. Lee's announcement came two days after photos of him dressed in drag at a powderpuff game went viral on social media platform Reddit. The 1977 high school yearbook photo shows Lee dressed as a female cheerleader, wearing a wig and pearl necklace.[100][101][102] Lee signed the anti-drag bill into law on March 2, 2023.[103][104] In June 2023, a federal court blocked the law as unconstitutional under the First Amendment. The Tennessee attorney general has appealed the decision.

Marijuana and gambling edit

As a candidate for governor, Lee opposed medical marijuana legislation and marijuana decriminalization.[105] As governor, he continued to oppose marijuana decriminalization, saying in 2019, "I have said before and still believe that we should not decriminalize marijuana... I think that's not good for our state."[106]

An opponent of legalized gambling in the state, in 2019 Lee allowed a sports betting legalization bill to become law without his signature.[107][108]

COVID-19 pandemic edit

On March 12, 2020, in response to the growing number of COVID-19 cases, Lee issued an executive order declaring a temporary state of emergency in Tennessee to "facilitate the treatment and containment of COVID-19."[109] He extended the "stay-at-home" mandate through April 2020.[110][111] Lee issued further orders for a "limited continuing state of emergency" through 2020 and 2021 to facilitate the state's eligibility for federal economic aid, and allowed the Tennessee National Guard and Tennessee State Guard to continue to assist with COVID-19 response efforts.[112][113][114]

In March 2020, as the number of COVID-19 cases grew, Lee urged school districts to close through March to prevent the further spread of the disease.[115] In April, as the number of COVID-19 cases continued to grow, he asked all school districts to close for the remainder of the school year.[116] In October 2020, after a member of Lee's security detail tested positive for COVID-19, Lee said that he and his wife would quarantine at home, likely for two weeks.[117]

Throughout the pandemic, Lee opposed a statewide mask mandate and "touted Tennessee for being one of the last to close early in the pandemic and among the first to reopen."[118] On April 28, 2020, Lee signed an executive order allowing gyms in 89 out of 95 counties to open on May 1.[119] By September, he lifted restrictions on businesses and gathering restrictions in Tennessee, except for the state's six most populous counties.[120] By April 2021, Lee declared that COVID-19 was "a managed public health issue in Tennessee and no longer a statewide public health emergency"; ended local authority on mask mandates in 89 counties; and called for remaining local restrictions to be lifted.[121]

As the highly contagious Delta variant spread in Tennessee, Lee said that he had "no real concern" over it.[122] COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations surged in Tennessee from July to August 2021.[118] Tennessee's COVID-19 vaccination rate was among the lowest in the country.[123] Lee encouraged Tennesseans to get vaccinated, but opposed vaccine mandates and, amid the resurgence of COVID-19 cases, maintained that it was a personal choice whether to get vaccinated.[123][124] He also dismissed suggestions for a return to restrictions[124] or offering COVID-19 vaccine incentives.[124][25]

In 2021, Lee blocked the Tennessee Department of Health from reaching out to teenagers to encourage them to get vaccinated.[123][125] In July 2021, his administration fired the state's vaccine chief, Michelle Fiscus, who had angered some Republican state legislators by promoting vaccination for eligible youth.[123] The state Health Department stopped vaccination-related outreach to minors for all diseases, not only COVID-19.[123] Lee opposed offering vaccine incentives even as the Tennessee government spent nearly $500,000 to incentivize farmers to vaccinate cattle against respiratory disease as part of the "Herd Health" program, launched in 2019 under Lee.[25]

In August 2021, Lee signed an executive order that allowed parents to let their children opt out of school mask mandates.[126] The next month, Lee vowed to fight President Joe Biden's plan to require COVID-19 vaccines for federal employees and federal contractors, as well as to require businesses with more than 100 employees to require vaccination or weekly COVID-19 testing; Lee asserted that the action was unconstitutional.[127]

In November 2021, Lee signed a bill into law that restricted the ability of localities to implement public health restrictions, such as mask mandates.[128]

Other edit

 
Governor Lee (far right) tours a tornado ravaged neighborhood in Cookeville with President Trump

In February 2020, Lee signed a bill making Tennessee's official nickname the "Volunteer State." The name originated during the War of 1812, when Tennessee sent 1,500 volunteer soldiers.[129]

In 2021, Lee appointed John DeBerry as his senior advisor. DeBerry was a Democratic member of the state house whom the Tennessee Democratic Party removed from the 2020 primary ballot.[130]

In July 2019, Lee toured damage in West Tennessee inflicted by flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Barry.[131] A series of tornadoes in Tennessee on March 2–3, 2020 killed 25 people and injured 150. Lee oversaw the state's recovery efforts and surveyed the damage in Nashville, visiting Germantown, Tennessee State University, and Cookeville.[132][133]

In 2022, Lee signed a bill into law that prohibits localities in Tennessee from using ranked-choice voting.[134]

Electoral history edit

2018 election edit

Tennessee gubernatorial Republican primary, 2018[135]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Bill Lee 291,414 36.75
Republican Randy Boyd 193,054 24.35
Republican Diane Black 182,457 23.01
Republican Beth Harwell 121,484 15.32
Republican Kay White 3,215 0.41
Republican Basil Marceaux 1,264 0.16
Total votes 792,888 100.0
2018 Tennessee gubernatorial election[136]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Bill Lee 1,336,106 59.56% −10.75%
Democratic Karl Dean 864,863 38.55% +15.71%
Independent Other candidates 42,314 1.89% N/A
Write-in 11 0.00% 0.00%
Total votes 2,243,294 100.0% N/A
Republican hold

*This election had 28 candidates total.

2022 election edit

Tennessee gubernatorial Republican primary, 2022[137]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Bill Lee (incumbent) 494,362 100.00
Total votes 494,362 100.00
2022 Tennessee gubernatorial election[138]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Bill Lee (incumbent) 1,129,390 64.91% +5.55
Democratic Jason Martin 572,818 32.92% −5.63
Independent John Gentry 15,395 0.89% N/A
Independent Constance Every 10,277 0.59% N/A
Independent Deborah Rouse 3,772 0.22% N/A
Independent Rick Tyler 2,380 0.14% N/A
Independent Charles Van Morgan 1,862 0.11% N/A
Independent Basil Marceaux 1,568 0.09% N/A
Independent Alfred O'Neil 1,216 0.07% N/A
Independent Michael Scantland 815 0.05% N/A
Write-In Lemichael D. Wilson 386 0.02% N/A
Write-In Charles Carney 2 0.00% N/A
Write-In Stephen C. Maxwell 1 0.00% N/A
Write-In Kameron Parker Scott 0 0.00% N/A
Total votes 1,739,882 100.00%
Turnout 1,756,397 38.61% −15.85%
Registered electors 4,549,183
Republican hold

References edit

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  90. ^ Kruesi, Kimberly; Mattise, Jonathan (January 14, 2020). "Tennessee governor says he will sign anti-LGBT adoption bill". Associated Press. from the original on 2020-07-25. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  91. ^ "Tennessee governor says he will sign anti-gay adoption bill". NBC News. January 15, 2020. from the original on January 16, 2020. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
  92. ^ "Gov. Lee says he signed LGBT adoption refusal bill to protect religious liberty". WTVF-TV. January 20, 2020. from the original on January 21, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
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  94. ^ "Tennessee's governor signs transgender athlete bill". ABC News. Associated Press. March 26, 2021. from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
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  96. ^ "Even the Log Cabin Republicans are against Tennessee's anti-trans bathroom bill". PinkNews. 2021-05-11. from the original on 2021-05-20. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  97. ^ "Trans Billionaire May Move Out of Tennessee Over Anti-LGBTQ Bills". www.advocate.com. 2021-04-20. from the original on 2021-05-19. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  98. ^ Mattise, Jonathan (June 25, 2021). "Tennessee sued over new transgender bathroom sign law". Associated Press. Nashville. from the original on July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  99. ^ Yurcaba, Jo (July 9, 2021). "Judge blocks Tennessee's transgender bathroom sign law". NBC News. from the original on July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  100. ^ Oladipo, Gloria (February 28, 2023). "Tennessee governor to ban drag shows – despite photo of him dressed in drag". The Guardian. from the original on 28 February 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  101. ^ Lavietes, Matt (February 27, 2023). "Tennessee governor appears to have dressed in drag, an art form he wants to restrict". Yahoo! News. NBC News. from the original on 1 March 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  102. ^ Karam, Alec (February 27, 2023). "Drag-Banning Tennessee Guv Shrugs Off Old Drag Pic as a 'Lighthearted Tradition'". The Daily Beast. from the original on 1 March 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2023. But that's different, Lee's office told The Daily Beast on Monday, saying that 'lighthearted school traditions' shouldn't be 'conflated' with the issue the state is banning.
  103. ^ Migdon, Brooke (March 2, 2023). "Tennessee enacts nation's first law restricting drag shows, bans gender-affirming care for youth". The Hill. from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  104. ^ Santucci, Jeanine; Brown, Melissa (March 2, 2023). "Tennessee drag show restrictions, ban on gender-affirming care for minors signed into law". USA Today. from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  105. ^ Kelman, Brett. "Medical marijuana in Tennessee? Here's what to expect with new Governor Bill Lee". The Tennessean. from the original on 2023-03-09. Retrieved 2022-11-27.
  106. ^ "Governor Lee doubles down on his stance against marijuana decriminalization". WMC Action News 5. March 8, 2019. from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  107. ^ "Millions wagered in first week of Tennessee sports gambling". AP NEWS. 2020-11-17. from the original on 2023-02-18. Retrieved 2022-11-27.
  108. ^ "Tennessee governor allows sports betting without signature". AP NEWS. 2019-05-24. from the original on 2022-10-04. Retrieved 2022-11-27.
  109. ^ "Gov. Bill Lee Issues Executive Order Declaring State of Emergency in Response to COVID-19". tn.gov. March 12, 2020. from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
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  111. ^ "Gov. Bill Lee extends statewide 'Stay-at-Home' order". wate.com. April 13, 2020. from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
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  113. ^ Moore, Mackenzie (July 30, 2021). "Gov. Bill Lee declares 'limited continuing state of emergency' amid surge in COVID-19 cases statewide". WJHL-TV. Johnson City, Tennessee. from the original on August 17, 2021.
  114. ^ Allison, Natalie (December 22, 2020). "Gov. Bill Lee extends Tennessee state of emergency through end of February". The Tennessean. Nashville. from the original on March 9, 2023.
  115. ^ Gonzales, Jason (March 16, 2020). "Gov. Bill Lee urges Tennessee school districts to close through March amid coronavirus spread". The Tennessean. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  116. ^ Bowles, Laken (April 15, 2020). "Tennessee schools asked to close for remainder of school year". newschannel5.com. from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
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  125. ^ "How Red States Got Their Groove Back". Governing. 2021-07-26. from the original on 2021-07-27. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
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  130. ^ "Lee names former Democratic lawmaker DeBerry as adviser". WTVF. November 30, 2020. from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
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  132. ^ Mickens-Jefferson, Courtney (March 3, 2020). "Gov. Bill Lee says search for survivors continues as individuals remain unaccounted for following overnight tornadoes". WMC-TV. from the original on September 1, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  133. ^ "Remarks by President Trump After Surveying Tornado Damage | Cookeville, TN". whitehouse.gov. from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2020 – via National Archives.
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  138. ^ State of Tennessee General Election Results Governor, November 8, 2022, Results By Office (PDF) (Report). Secretary of State of Tennessee. (PDF) from the original on January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2023.

External links edit

  • Official governor website
  • Campaign website
  • Appearances on C-SPAN
Party political offices
Preceded by Republican nominee for Governor of Tennessee
2018, 2022
Most recent
Preceded by Chair of the Republican Governors Association
2023–present
Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by Governor of Tennessee
2019–present
Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byas Vice President Order of precedence of the United States
Within Tennessee
Succeeded by
Mayor of city
in which event is held
Succeeded by
Otherwise Mike Johnson
as Speaker of the House
Preceded byas Governor of Kentucky Order of precedence of the United States
Outside Tennessee
Succeeded byas Governor of Ohio

bill, tennessee, politician, this, article, about, governor, tennessee, other, people, named, bill, william, william, byron, born, october, 1959, american, businessman, politician, served, since, 2019, 50th, governor, tennessee, member, republican, party, pres. This article is about the governor of Tennessee For other people named Bill Lee see William Lee William Byron Lee born October 9 1959 is an American businessman and politician who has served since 2019 as the 50th governor of Tennessee 1 2 A member of the Republican Party Lee was president and chief executive officer CEO of the Lee Company a business operated by his family from 1992 to 2016 3 Bill Lee50th Governor of TennesseeIncumbentAssumed office January 19 2019LieutenantRandy McNallyPreceded byBill HaslamChair of the Republican Governors AssociationIncumbentAssumed office December 7 2023Preceded byKim ReynoldsPersonal detailsBornWilliam Byron Lee 1959 10 09 October 9 1959 age 64 Franklin Tennessee U S Political partyRepublicanSpouse s Carol Ann Lee m 1984 died 2000 wbr Maria Lee m 2008 wbr Children4ResidenceGovernor s MansionEducationAuburn University BS SignatureIn 2017 Lee described himself as a social conservative 4 As governor he has signed bills to ban abortion in Tennessee mask mandates and ranked choice voting to allow guns to be carried without a permit create school voucher programs and increase penalties for protest related offenses Lee signed Tennessee s bathroom bill 5 as well as a bill that assures continued taxpayer funding of faith based adoption agencies that exclude LGBT people for religious reasons 6 and the Adult Entertainment Act which banned drag shows in public until a federal court ruled it unconstitutional 7 Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Personal life 3 Gubernatorial elections 3 1 2018 3 2 2022 4 Tenure as governor 4 1 Abortion 4 2 Health care and leave 4 3 Budget and economy 4 4 Education 4 5 Race relations and Floyd protests 4 6 Refugee resettlement 4 7 Capital punishment 4 8 Guns 4 9 2020 presidential election 4 10 Social issues 4 11 LGBT issues 4 12 Marijuana and gambling 4 13 COVID 19 pandemic 4 14 Other 5 Electoral history 5 1 2018 election 5 2 2022 election 6 References 7 External linksEarly life and career editWilliam Byron Lee was born on October 9 1959 He was raised on his family s 1 000 acre 400 ha cattle farm started by his grandparents in Franklin Tennessee the Triple L Ranch the family raises Hereford cattle 8 9 10 Lee is a seventh generation Tennessean 11 After graduating from Franklin High School in his hometown 12 Lee entered Auburn University in 1977 and graduated in 1981 13 with a bachelor s degree in mechanical engineering 9 In college Lee was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order a fraternity known at the time for its use of Confederate imagery and a photo printed in the university s 1980 yearbook shows Lee in a Confederate military uniform at the fraternity s Old South party 14 In 2019 after his attendance came to light Lee expressed regret for his participation I never intentionally acted in an insensitive way but with the benefit of hindsight I can see that participating in that was insensitive and I ve come to regret it 13 Lee was named president and CEO of his family s home services and construction company Lee Company holding the position from 1992 until 2016 9 4 He briefly served as chairman 4 Personal life editLee lives in Fernvale with his second wife Maria whom he married in October 2008 15 His first wife Carol Ann died in 2000 in a horseback riding accident 16 17 After her death Lee took extended time off from his construction company to raise his four children 9 Lee attends Grace Chapel Church in Leiper s Fork 4 Lee previously served as a member of the board of trustees of Belmont University when chairman of the YMCA of Middle Tennessee when president of the Associated Builders and Contractors when and a board member of the Hope Clinic for Women and the Men of Valor Prison Ministry when 9 Gubernatorial elections edit2018 edit Main article 2018 Tennessee gubernatorial election nbsp Final results by county in 2018 Bill Lee 80 90 70 80 60 70 50 60 Karl Dean 60 70 50 60 nbsp Bill Lee at his campaign event in 2018In April 2017 Lee announced his candidacy in the 2018 election for governor of Tennessee 4 A self described social conservative he also targeted pro business Republicans 4 In the Republican primary election Lee faced Congresswoman Diane Black Knoxville businessman and former Tennessee Economic and Development Commissioner Randy Boyd and state House speaker Beth Harwell 4 18 Originally considered a long shot Lee rose in the polls as Boyd and Black launched negative advertising against each other 2 19 He won the August 2 primary with 291 414 votes 36 8 to Boyd s 193 054 24 3 Black s 182 457 23 0 and Harwell s 121 484 15 3 20 Lee defeated former Democratic Nashville mayor Karl Dean in the November 6 general election 21 receiving 1 336 106 votes 59 6 to Dean s 864 863 38 6 22 This marked the first time since 1982 that a candidate from the incumbent U S President s party was elected governor of Tennessee This is also the first time that Republicans won three consecutive gubernatorial elections in the state and the first time that a Republican was elected to succeed another Republican As of 2024 this election had the largest number of candidates 28 in a statewide election in U S history the previous record was the 2016 United States presidential election in Colorado This large surge in candidates was mostly due to the Libertarian Party of Tennessee s protest of the state s party affiliation and ballot access laws 23 2022 edit Main article 2022 Tennessee gubernatorial election nbsp Final results by county in 2022 Bill Lee 80 90 70 80 60 70 50 60 Jason Martin 60 70 50 60 In September 2020 Lee announced his candidacy for reelection for 2022 24 He was unchallenged in the Republican primary 25 26 and endorsed in August 2021 by Donald Trump 27 In the November 8 general election Lee was reelected receiving 1 129 390 votes 64 9 to Democratic nominee Jason Martin s 572 818 32 9 During the general election Lee flipped reliably Democratic Haywood County home to Brownsville It is one of only two remaining counties in Tennessee along with Shelby County with a majority African American population Haywood County has not voted Republican on a presidential level since 1972 Voter turnout for the 2022 midterm elections in Tennessee was the lowest it has been in nearly a decade with only 38 57 of Tennessee s registered voters turning out The last time turnout was this low in Tennessee was in the 2014 midterm elections This turnout was far below the 2020 presidential election in Tennessee which saw a turnout of 68 6 28 29 Lee was sworn in on January 21 2023 Tenure as governor edit nbsp Governor Bill Lee taking the oath of office Lee was sworn in on January 19 2019 2 and delivered his first State of the State address to the Tennessee General Assembly in March 2019 30 Abortion edit In January 2020 Lee proposed a bill to ban abortion as early as six weeks into pregnancy 31 32 33 The legislation was among the nation s strictest abortion bans and was similar to six week abortion bans that were blocked by courts in Mississippi Ohio and other states 34 35 Passed in the final hours of the General Assembly 2020 session on a party line vote it was challenged in federal court by Planned Parenthood and the ACLU 36 37 Lee signed the bill into law in July 2020 35 A federal judge immediately blocked its enforcement because it violated Supreme Court precedent such as Roe v Wade which prohibits undue burdens on pre viability abortions 34 After Roe v Wade was overturned Lee supported Tennessee s near total ban on abortion which provides no exception for rape incest or the mother s health except in cases of serious bodily harm to the mother 38 Health care and leave edit Lee opposes the expansion of TennCare the state s Medicaid program as allowed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 39 As governor he has rejected proposals to expand TennCare 40 Lee has supported calls from dentists to extend TennCare to pregnant women who need dental care 41 In January 2020 Lee signed an executive order effective March 1 2020 that offered state employees three months paid leave for new parents and caregivers of sick relatives He called it one of the most cost effective investments in the families of our state employees in recent history 42 Budget and economy edit In 2019 Lee proposed repealing Tennessee s 10 amusement tax on gym fitness center and health club fees arguing that the tax discourages Tennesseans from being physically active If enacted the repeal would reduce state revenues by around 10 million 43 In September 2020 Lee supported a Tennessee delegation that traveled to Beijing to enhance trade and economic linkages between the state and the People s Republic of China 44 Education edit In a March 2019 State of West Tennessee address Lee proposed creating more charter schools and that the state use 25 million to help traditional public schools when they lose students 45 In his February 2020 state of West Tennessee address he proposed investing 70 million to equip teachers with professional development materials and other tools to help increase the state s literacy rate 46 Lee has also promoted the GIVE program which prioritizes learning opportunities in rural counties and enhances career and technical education statewide 47 In April 2019 Lee announced that Tennessee would temporarily reinstate paper based assessments for students taking the TNReady test an annual statewide assessment during the 2019 20 school year 48 Lee supports charter schools 49 In May 2019 he signed into law a school voucher bill that created a program to provide public funds to families for private school tuition and costs starting in the 2020 21 fiscal year 50 but a judge ruled the program unconstitutional in May 2020 before it could go into effect 51 Of 64 million in discretionary COVID 19 relief funding for education that went to his office Lee sent 10 million to charter schools including 4 4 million to launch new charters 52 In July 2019 Lee signed a bill into law that calls for school districts across the state to establish threat assessment teams to address potential threats to school safety 53 In February 2020 Lee proposed a 117 million investment to increase teacher salaries and a 250 million endowment to address mental health in K 12 education 54 Race relations and Floyd protests edit In July 2019 Lee signed an order proclaiming Nathan Bedford Forrest Day as required by Tennessee law celebrating Forrest a famous Confederate general and the first Grand Wizard of the white supremacist group the Ku Klux Klan 55 The legislature repealed this requirement in June 2020 56 In December 2019 Lee proclaimed December 1 Rosa Parks Day to commemorate the start of the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott 57 In May 2020 after Minneapolis police murdered George Floyd Lee condemned the officers involved saying police brutality is not law enforcement 58 On May 30 2020 an I will breathe protest was held in Nashville in protest of Floyd s murder During the protest a man set fire to the Davidson County Courthouse the building was not severely damaged 59 In response Lee mobilized the National Guard in Nashville saying the protests had taken a violent unlawful turn 60 In August 2020 Lee signed into law a bill 61 increasing the severity of penalties for a number of protest related offenses One notable change 62 is that it reclassifies camping on state property after being warned of trespass from a misdemeanor to a felony offense punishable by up to six years in prison This means that anyone convicted of the act will also lose their right to vote as convicted felons in Tennessee are disfranchised 63 Refugee resettlement edit In December 2019 after the Donald Trump administration allowed states to halt refugee resettlement in their states Lee declined the offer making Tennessee one of a handful of Republican led states to do so and announced that Tennessee would continue to accept refugees 64 65 66 Lee s decision was opposed by Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally and Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives Cameron Sexton 65 During a 2020 trip to the Tri Cities Lee was met with protests from opponents of refugee resettlement 67 Capital punishment edit Lee supports capital punishment and Tennessee has executed seven people since resuming executions in 2018 64 One notable person executed under Lee is Nicholas Todd Sutton He was sentenced to life after taking 3 lives from 1979 to 1980 While in prison he saved one corrections officer s life protected two others 68 and converted to Christianity 69 In 1986 Sutton took the life of another prisoner after he threatened to kill Sutton who was then sentenced to death 70 In February 2020 he was executed after Lee denied clemency 71 In 2022 Lee set a temporary moratorium on Tennessee s death penalty citing concerns about botched executions 72 Guns edit In 2019 with the support of Republican state legislators Lee loosened Tennessee s handgun law allowing concealed carry only handgun permits to be obtained without requiring applicants to show an ability to fire a weapon 73 In April 2021 Lee signed into law a permitless carry bill the legislation allows most adults 21 and older as well as military personnel ages 18 20 to carry handguns open and concealed without a background check or required training It also increased the penalty for unlawful use of a firearm and obtaining an illegal firearm 73 The bill which Lee also supported the previous year 73 74 was supported by the National Rifle Association and opposed by law enforcement organizations such as police chiefs sheriffs and prosecutors 73 After the Covenant School shooting in Nashville on March 27 2023 Lee initially did not call for any gun control saying There will come a time to discuss and debate policy But this is not a time for hate or rage That will not resolve or heal 75 Lee said that his wife Maria was close friends with two of the shooting victims and one of them Cindy Peak had been expected for dinner at the governor s mansion on the day of the shooting 76 Four days after the shooting with large protests in the state calling for reforms Lee declined to explicitly say whether he would support gun control measures but did say that individuals who are a threat to themselves or to others shouldn t have access to weapons 77 In the wake of the scandals around the 2023 Tennessee House of Representatives expulsions which occurred after protests in favor of gun control Lee signed an executive order on April 11 strengthening background checks for gun purchases and also called for the state legislature to pass an order of protection law 78 On August 8 2023 Lee officially called for a special session of the General Assembly to be held on August 21 to focus on public safety in response to the shooting 79 80 2020 presidential election edit After Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on September 18 2020 several weeks before the presidential election Lee supported Trump s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to fill the vacant seat citing his position on abortion 81 82 After Joe Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 presidential election Lee was one of many Republican officials nationwide and in Tennessee who refused to acknowledge Biden s victory amid Trump s false claims of fraud 83 84 Biden won a clear victory in both the popular and the electoral vote 84 but Lee refused to recognize Biden as president elect even after the election had been called 85 after the presidential transition had formally begun 86 and after the electoral college had voted formalizing Biden s victory 87 On January 8 2021 two days after a pro Trump mob stormed the U S Capitol in a bid to disrupt the counting of the electoral votes and keep Trump in power Lee condemned the riot and acknowledged Biden as president elect 83 88 89 Social issues edit Lee identifies as a social conservative 4 He emphasized his Christian faith creating an office devoted to faith based initiatives and declared October 10 an official voluntary day of prayer and fasting 64 LGBT issues edit Lee supports allowing religious foster care and adoption agencies to prohibit same sex married couples from adopting children 90 In January 2020 he signed into law a bill that assures continued taxpayer funding of faith based foster care and adoption agencies that exclude LGBT families and others based on religious beliefs Lee and supporters of the legislation framed the bill as a religious liberty bill that would shield organizations from potential lawsuits hostile to the group s religious beliefs 6 91 92 Nike and Amazon released statements opposing the bill 93 On March 26 Lee signed legislation banning transgender athletes from participating in sports opposite to their biological sex making Tennessee the third state to do so 94 In May 2021 he signed a bathroom bill that prohibited transgender people from accessing public school bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity 5 In May 2021 Lee signed legislation that forces businesses who serve transgender customers equally with restrooms to display warning signs that they do so 95 LGBT activists Democrats and some Republicans criticized the bill as an attempt to shame and harm businesses 96 95 Many businesses and business leaders threatened to leave Tennessee in protest of these bills including Nissan North America Amazon Dell Pilot Mars PetCare and Warner Music Group and Republican transgender business leader Jennifer Pritzker 97 The American Civil Liberties Union sued to stop the law 98 and in July 2021 a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the law finding that it violated the First Amendment 99 On February 27 2023 Lee declared that he would sign the Adult Entertainment Act which bans public drag performances the first violation of the law would be a misdemeanor while the second would be a felony Lee s announcement came two days after photos of him dressed in drag at a powderpuff game went viral on social media platform Reddit The 1977 high school yearbook photo shows Lee dressed as a female cheerleader wearing a wig and pearl necklace 100 101 102 Lee signed the anti drag bill into law on March 2 2023 103 104 In June 2023 a federal court blocked the law as unconstitutional under the First Amendment The Tennessee attorney general has appealed the decision Marijuana and gambling edit As a candidate for governor Lee opposed medical marijuana legislation and marijuana decriminalization 105 As governor he continued to oppose marijuana decriminalization saying in 2019 I have said before and still believe that we should not decriminalize marijuana I think that s not good for our state 106 An opponent of legalized gambling in the state in 2019 Lee allowed a sports betting legalization bill to become law without his signature 107 108 COVID 19 pandemic edit Main article COVID 19 pandemic in Tennessee On March 12 2020 in response to the growing number of COVID 19 cases Lee issued an executive order declaring a temporary state of emergency in Tennessee to facilitate the treatment and containment of COVID 19 109 He extended the stay at home mandate through April 2020 110 111 Lee issued further orders for a limited continuing state of emergency through 2020 and 2021 to facilitate the state s eligibility for federal economic aid and allowed the Tennessee National Guard and Tennessee State Guard to continue to assist with COVID 19 response efforts 112 113 114 In March 2020 as the number of COVID 19 cases grew Lee urged school districts to close through March to prevent the further spread of the disease 115 In April as the number of COVID 19 cases continued to grow he asked all school districts to close for the remainder of the school year 116 In October 2020 after a member of Lee s security detail tested positive for COVID 19 Lee said that he and his wife would quarantine at home likely for two weeks 117 Throughout the pandemic Lee opposed a statewide mask mandate and touted Tennessee for being one of the last to close early in the pandemic and among the first to reopen 118 On April 28 2020 Lee signed an executive order allowing gyms in 89 out of 95 counties to open on May 1 119 By September he lifted restrictions on businesses and gathering restrictions in Tennessee except for the state s six most populous counties 120 By April 2021 Lee declared that COVID 19 was a managed public health issue in Tennessee and no longer a statewide public health emergency ended local authority on mask mandates in 89 counties and called for remaining local restrictions to be lifted 121 As the highly contagious Delta variant spread in Tennessee Lee said that he had no real concern over it 122 COVID 19 cases and hospitalizations surged in Tennessee from July to August 2021 118 Tennessee s COVID 19 vaccination rate was among the lowest in the country 123 Lee encouraged Tennesseans to get vaccinated but opposed vaccine mandates and amid the resurgence of COVID 19 cases maintained that it was a personal choice whether to get vaccinated 123 124 He also dismissed suggestions for a return to restrictions 124 or offering COVID 19 vaccine incentives 124 25 In 2021 Lee blocked the Tennessee Department of Health from reaching out to teenagers to encourage them to get vaccinated 123 125 In July 2021 his administration fired the state s vaccine chief Michelle Fiscus who had angered some Republican state legislators by promoting vaccination for eligible youth 123 The state Health Department stopped vaccination related outreach to minors for all diseases not only COVID 19 123 Lee opposed offering vaccine incentives even as the Tennessee government spent nearly 500 000 to incentivize farmers to vaccinate cattle against respiratory disease as part of the Herd Health program launched in 2019 under Lee 25 In August 2021 Lee signed an executive order that allowed parents to let their children opt out of school mask mandates 126 The next month Lee vowed to fight President Joe Biden s plan to require COVID 19 vaccines for federal employees and federal contractors as well as to require businesses with more than 100 employees to require vaccination or weekly COVID 19 testing Lee asserted that the action was unconstitutional 127 In November 2021 Lee signed a bill into law that restricted the ability of localities to implement public health restrictions such as mask mandates 128 Other edit nbsp Governor Lee far right tours a tornado ravaged neighborhood in Cookeville with President TrumpIn February 2020 Lee signed a bill making Tennessee s official nickname the Volunteer State The name originated during the War of 1812 when Tennessee sent 1 500 volunteer soldiers 129 In 2021 Lee appointed John DeBerry as his senior advisor DeBerry was a Democratic member of the state house whom the Tennessee Democratic Party removed from the 2020 primary ballot 130 In July 2019 Lee toured damage in West Tennessee inflicted by flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Barry 131 A series of tornadoes in Tennessee on March 2 3 2020 killed 25 people and injured 150 Lee oversaw the state s recovery efforts and surveyed the damage in Nashville visiting Germantown Tennessee State University and Cookeville 132 133 In 2022 Lee signed a bill into law that prohibits localities in Tennessee from using ranked choice voting 134 Electoral history edit2018 election edit Tennessee gubernatorial Republican primary 2018 135 Party Candidate Votes Republican Bill Lee 291 414 36 75Republican Randy Boyd 193 054 24 35Republican Diane Black 182 457 23 01Republican Beth Harwell 121 484 15 32Republican Kay White 3 215 0 41Republican Basil Marceaux 1 264 0 16Total votes 792 888 100 02018 Tennessee gubernatorial election 136 Party Candidate Votes Republican Bill Lee 1 336 106 59 56 10 75 Democratic Karl Dean 864 863 38 55 15 71 Independent Other candidates 42 314 1 89 N AWrite in 11 0 00 0 00 Total votes 2 243 294 100 0 N ARepublican hold This election had 28 candidates total 2022 election edit Tennessee gubernatorial Republican primary 2022 137 Party Candidate Votes Republican Bill Lee incumbent 494 362 100 00Total votes 494 362 100 002022 Tennessee gubernatorial election 138 Party Candidate Votes Republican Bill Lee incumbent 1 129 390 64 91 5 55Democratic Jason Martin 572 818 32 92 5 63Independent John Gentry 15 395 0 89 N AIndependent Constance Every 10 277 0 59 N AIndependent Deborah Rouse 3 772 0 22 N AIndependent Rick Tyler 2 380 0 14 N AIndependent Charles Van Morgan 1 862 0 11 N AIndependent Basil Marceaux 1 568 0 09 N AIndependent Alfred O Neil 1 216 0 07 N AIndependent Michael Scantland 815 0 05 N AWrite In Lemichael D Wilson 386 0 02 N AWrite In Charles Carney 2 0 00 N AWrite In Stephen C Maxwell 1 0 00 N AWrite In Kameron Parker Scott 0 0 00 N ATotal votes 1 739 882 100 00 Turnout 1 756 397 38 61 15 85 Registered electors 4 549 183Republican holdReferences edit Gov Bill Lee nga org National Governors Association Archived from the original on 2019 02 22 Retrieved 2019 02 22 a b c Ebert Joel Allison Natalie January 19 2019 Bill Lee sworn in as Tennessee s 50th governor nearly 2 years after long shot bid The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2019 01 19 Bill Lee stepping down as CEO of Lee Co Nashville Post February 5 2016 Archived from the original on 2018 11 08 Retrieved 2018 11 08 a b c d e f g h Ebert Joel Garrison Joey April 23 2017 Republican Bill Lee announces run for governor of Tennessee The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved August 3 2018 a b Tennessee gov signs transgender bathroom bill for schools NBC News Associated Press May 18 2021 Retrieved October 28 2023 a b Ebert Joel January 24 2020 Tennessee Gov Bill Lee signs bill allowing adoption agencies to deny gay couples The Tennessean Archived from the original on January 25 2020 Retrieved January 25 2020 Tennessee governor signs first of its kind bill restricting drag shows NBC News 3 March 2023 Retrieved 2023 04 01 Gov Bill Lee nga org National Governors Association Archived from the original on 2019 02 22 Retrieved 2019 02 22 a b c d e Jett Tyler July 6 2018 Who is Bill Lee Bill Lee says he was called to run for governor Chattanooga Times Free Press Archived from the original on 2018 11 23 Retrieved 2018 11 08 About LLL Ranch lllranch com Triple L Ranch Archived from the original on September 4 2019 Retrieved September 16 2019 Plazas David October 8 2018 Tennessee governor election Meet Bill Lee The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2020 07 25 Franklin businessman Bill Lee raises 1 3 million for governors race Williamson Home Page June 7 2017 Archived from the original on November 8 2019 Retrieved November 8 2019 a b Allison Nathan February 20 2019 Tennessee Gov Bill Lee says he regrets participating in Old South parties at Auburn University The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2019 02 24 Allison Natalie Gov Bill Lee pictured in Auburn yearbook wearing Confederate army uniform The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Grigsby Karen Ebert Joel November 6 2018 Bill Lee s wife 6 things to know about next Tennessee first lady Maria Lee The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved November 8 2018 Clipped From The Tennessean The Tennessean 2000 07 24 p 60 Archived from the original on 2022 11 27 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Buie Jordan August 4 2017 Campaigning for Tennessee governor What life is like on the road with Republican Bill Lee The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved November 8 2018 Ebert Joel August 2 2018 Bill Lee wins Republican nomination for governor of Tennessee The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2018 08 02 Ebert Joel How Diane Black and Randy Boyd lost Tennessee s Republican primary for governor The Tennessean Archived from the original on September 18 2018 Retrieved August 7 2018 August 2018 Primary Election Results PDF tn gov Secretary of State of Tennessee August 30 2018 Archived PDF from the original on 2021 05 15 Retrieved 2019 02 22 Allison Natalie November 6 2018 Republican Bill Lee wins race for Tennessee governor defeating Democrat Karl Dean The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 November 2018 General Election Results PDF tn gov Secretary of State of Tennessee November 2018 Archived PDF from the original on 2021 03 06 Retrieved 2019 02 22 Tennessee Gubernatorial Election Has Greatest Number of Candidates for a Regularly Scheduled Statewide Election in U S History Ballot Access News ballot access org 8 September 2018 Archived from the original on 2023 02 18 Retrieved 2023 02 18 Ebert Joel September 3 2020 I love this job Bill Lee says he ll seek a second term as Tennessee governor The Tennessean The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved September 25 2020 a b c Tennessee won t incentivize COVID shots but pays to vax cows AP NEWS 2021 08 03 Archived from the original on 2022 11 27 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Tennessee Election Results 2022 Live Primary Map Updates www politico com Retrieved 2022 08 20 permanent dead link Trump endorses Tennessee Gov Lee in 2022 reelection bid AP NEWS 2021 08 14 Archived from the original on 2022 11 27 Retrieved 2022 11 27 McCullough Erin 2022 11 11 Less than 40 of registered voters in Tennessee turned out for the 2022 midterms WKRN News 2 Archived from the original on 2022 11 13 Retrieved 2022 11 11 Gonzales Tony 2022 11 10 Tennessee voter turnout far below 2018 showing 90 3 WPLM News Archived from the original on 2022 12 30 Retrieved 2022 12 30 Full speech Read Tennessee Gov Bill Lee s first State of the State address The Tennessean March 4 2019 Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved December 18 2019 Mattise Jonathan January 30 2019 Tennessee Governor Bill Lee top GOP lawmakers back heartbeat abortion ban Associated Press Archived from the original on February 22 2019 Retrieved February 22 2019 Bowles Laken January 23 2020 Gov Bill Lee announces new fetal heartbeat bill comprehensive abortion reform WTVF Archived from the original on January 23 2020 Retrieved January 24 2020 Rambaran Vandana January 23 2020 Tennessee governor announces heartbeat bill to restrict abortions Fox News Archived from the original on January 24 2020 Retrieved January 24 2020 a b Tennessee governor signs court blocks 6 week abortion ban AP NEWS 2021 04 22 Archived from the original on 2022 12 07 Retrieved 2022 11 27 a b Allison Natalie Gov Bill Lee signs controversial Tennessee abortion restriction measure into law The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Allison Natalie Tennessee legislature passes fetal heartbeat bill Planned Parenthood ACLU file lawsuit The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Timms Mariah Tennessee abortion ban Planned Parenthood providers ask judge to halt implementation The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Gov Bill Lee Statement on Dobbs Ruling www tn gov Archived from the original on 2022 08 26 Retrieved 2022 08 26 Where do Tennessee s candidates for governor stand on key issues The Tennessean July 10 2018 Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2020 07 25 Bundgaard Chris February 19 2019 TN Governor Bill Lee on Democrats Calls to Expand TennCare WATN TV Memphis Tennessee Archived from the original on 2019 02 22 Retrieved 2019 02 22 Hays Gabrielle February 11 2020 Gov Lee and dentists push for more dental coverage for pregnant women WBIR TV Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved February 12 2020 Allison Natalie January 7 2020 Tennessee Gov Bill Lee calls for 12 weeks paid leave for state employees who are new parents caregivers The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved January 7 2020 Tenn Gov Bill Lee to propose repealing gym tax in 2019 budget WATE February 19 2019 Archived from the original on February 20 2019 Retrieved February 19 2019 Wang Orange September 7 2020 China and Tennessee talk investment amid Donald Trump s decoupling drive South China Morning Post Archived from the original on September 6 2020 Retrieved September 7 2020 Jacobson Stacy March 7 2019 Governor Lee delivers first ever State of West Tennessee address in Memphis WREG TV Archived from the original on February 24 2020 Retrieved February 24 2020 Cook Kelli February 13 2020 Gov Bill Lee delivers State of West Tennessee address WMC TV Archived from the original on February 24 2020 Retrieved February 24 2020 Franklin Sean December 6 2019 Gov Bill Lee visiting East Tennessee high schools colleges to promote GIVE program WBIR TV Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved December 18 2019 Hoar Lauren April 4 2019 Gov Bill Lee Tennessee to return to paper based testing in 2019 20 school year WBIR TV Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved December 16 2019 Gonzales Jason June 24 2018 Tennessee governor race Where the candidates stand on the state s biggest education issues The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2020 07 25 Gov Bill Lee signs his controversial school voucher bill into law The Tennessean May 24 2019 Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved December 16 2019 Gang Duane W Testino Laura Judge blocks state from continuing school voucher work as Tennessee seeks appeals court decision The Commercial Appeal Archived from the original on 2020 05 10 Retrieved 2020 05 09 Mulvihill Geoff Tennessee Gov Bill Lee other governors use federal virus aid to expand school choice Knoxville News Sentinel Archived from the original on 2021 08 29 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Bartlett Kerri July 3 2019 Gov Bill Lee signs school safety bill into law to mitigate school threats The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved December 16 2019 Ebert Joel Allison Natalie February 3 2020 In second State of the State address Gov Bill Lee pushes major investments in education raises for teachers and state workers The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved February 6 2020 Allison Natalie Gov Bill Lee signs Nathan Bedford Forrest Day proclamation is not considering law change The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2022 06 10 Retrieved 2020 05 09 Jorge Kaylin July 13 2020 There s still Nathan Bedford Forrest Day in Tennessee here s why WZTV TV Nashville Archived from the original on May 21 2021 Governor Bill Lee declares Dec 1 as Rosa Parks Day WMC TV December 1 2019 Archived from the original on December 19 2019 Retrieved December 19 2019 Hardiman Samuel May 28 2020 Police brutality is not law enforcement Gov Bill Lee condemns officers involved in George Floyd s death Commercial Appeal Commercial Appeal Archived from the original on September 26 2020 Retrieved September 20 2020 Hickman Hayes June 1 2020 Former Knoxville man charged in arson at historic Nashville courthouse Knoxville News Sentinel Knoxville News Sentinel Archived from the original on September 4 2020 Retrieved September 20 2020 Gill Joey May 30 2020 Nashville I Will Breathe Gov Bill Lee authorizes National Guard to respond to Nashville riots WKRN TV WKRN TV Archived from the original on November 26 2020 Retrieved September 20 2020 Tennessee General Assembly Legislation wapp capitol tn gov Archived from the original on 2022 04 10 Retrieved 2022 06 02 Tennessee Code 39 14 414 Justia US Law 2020 Archived from the original on 2022 05 20 Retrieved 2022 06 02 Allison Natalie Gov Bill Lee planned for criminal justice reform Now he ll sign a bill going against those principles The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2020 08 24 a b c AP Interview Tennessee governor talks death penalty faith AP NEWS 2019 12 22 Archived from the original on 2023 02 18 Retrieved 2022 11 27 a b Allison Natalie Ebert Joel December 18 2019 Tennessee will continue accepting refugees Gov Bill Lee says as legislative leaders signal disapproval The Tennessean Retrieved December 19 2019 Ebert Joel Gov Bill Lee gives impassioned defense of his decision to accept refugees in Tennessee The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Daniel Anslee January 3 2020 Gov Bill Lee met by protesters on Tri Cities visit WJHL TV Archived from the original on January 4 2020 Retrieved January 6 2020 Ortega Pamela Smith Emily February 21 2020 3 corrections officers say Nicholas Sutton protected them He was executed Thursday night CNN Archived from the original on February 21 2020 Tennessee execution Nicholas Sutton s journey to the electric chair archive ph 2021 04 28 Archived from the original on 2021 04 28 Retrieved 2022 06 04 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint bot original URL status unknown link Four charged in murder of fellow prison inmate Johnson City Press 1985 05 30 p 2 Archived from the original on 2021 11 25 Retrieved 2022 06 04 Hale Steven February 19 2020 Governor Denies Clemency for Nick Sutton Nashville Scene Archived from the original on February 21 2020 Tennessee Governor Halts Executions Scheduled for 2022 to Conduct Review of Execution Protocol Oversight Death Penalty Information Center May 3 2022 Retrieved August 30 2023 a b c d Permits won t be needed to carry handguns in Tennessee AP NEWS 2021 04 20 Archived from the original on 2023 01 21 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Downing Kendall February 27 2020 Gov Bill Lee announces support for permitless carry legislation WMC TV Archived from the original on March 2 2020 Retrieved March 2 2020 Conroy J Oliver March 29 2023 Tennessee governor fails to mention gun control in message after shooting The Guardian Retrieved April 12 2023 VIDEO Gov Lee Addresses Tennesseans Following Tragic Covenant Shooting www tn gov Retrieved 2023 04 13 Brown Melissa March 31 2023 Tennessee Gov Bill Lee moves to boost school safety funding open to some gun reform after shooting The Tennessean Retrieved April 12 2023 Brown Melissa April 11 2023 Gov Bill Lee calls for order of protection law to keep guns away from dangerous individuals The Tennessean Retrieved April 12 2023 Gov Lee Issues Official Call Presents Legislative Priorities Ahead of Public Safety Special Session TN gov Office of the Governor August 8 2023 Retrieved August 8 2023 Brown Melissa Vivian Jones August 8 2023 Gov Bill Lee officially calls Tennessee lawmakers back for Aug 21 special session Tennessean com The Tennessean Retrieved August 8 2023 Mojica Adrian September 23 2020 Tennessee Governor Bill Lee supports President Trump filling RBG Supreme Court seat WZTV WZTV Archived from the original on September 26 2020 Retrieved September 25 2020 Mojica Adrian September 29 2020 Tennessee governor supports Judge Amy Coney Barrett nomination cites right to life stance WTVC WTVC Archived from the original on October 1 2020 Retrieved October 1 2020 a b Jonathan Mattise January 8 2021 GOP Tennessee governor acknowledges Biden as president elect Associated Press Archived from the original on August 17 2021 Retrieved August 17 2021 a b Natalie Allison November 10 2020 Despite no evidence of fraud Lee top Tennessee GOP officials decline to recognize Biden as president elect Nashville Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved August 17 2021 Jorge Kaylin November 9 2020 Tennessee Gov Lee says it s not clear who won the presidential election at this time WZTV Archived from the original on November 10 2020 Retrieved February 20 2021 Natalie Allison November 24 2020 Tennessee Gov Bill Lee still not ready to acknowledge Joe Biden as president elect despite transition beginning Nashville Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved August 17 2021 Natalie Allison November 10 2020 Tennessee Electoral College meets casts all 11 votes for Trump without incident Nashville Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved August 17 2021 Gov Lee condemns Capitol riot calls it a sad day for America WTVF January 8 2021 Archived from the original on April 28 2021 Retrieved April 28 2021 Gov Bill Lee acknowledges Biden as president elect WREG January 9 2021 Archived from the original on February 2 2021 Retrieved April 28 2021 Kruesi Kimberly Mattise Jonathan January 14 2020 Tennessee governor says he will sign anti LGBT adoption bill Associated Press Archived from the original on 2020 07 25 Retrieved 2020 07 25 Tennessee governor says he will sign anti gay adoption bill NBC News January 15 2020 Archived from the original on January 16 2020 Retrieved January 17 2020 Gov Lee says he signed LGBT adoption refusal bill to protect religious liberty WTVF TV January 20 2020 Archived from the original on January 21 2020 Retrieved January 23 2020 Barrett Sully January 17 2020 Tennessee Gov Lee to sign anti LGBTQ adoption bill despite Amazon Nike opposition CNBC Archived from the original on January 18 2020 Retrieved January 19 2020 Tennessee s governor signs transgender athlete bill ABC News Associated Press March 26 2021 Archived from the original on May 12 2021 Retrieved May 12 2021 a b Tennessee forces businesses to post warning signs if they have trans friendly restrooms Metro Weekly 2021 05 19 Archived from the original on 2021 05 19 Retrieved 2021 05 20 Even the Log Cabin Republicans are against Tennessee s anti trans bathroom bill PinkNews 2021 05 11 Archived from the original on 2021 05 20 Retrieved 2021 05 20 Trans Billionaire May Move Out of Tennessee Over Anti LGBTQ Bills www advocate com 2021 04 20 Archived from the original on 2021 05 19 Retrieved 2021 05 20 Mattise Jonathan June 25 2021 Tennessee sued over new transgender bathroom sign law Associated Press Nashville Archived from the original on July 28 2021 Retrieved July 28 2021 Yurcaba Jo July 9 2021 Judge blocks Tennessee s transgender bathroom sign law NBC News Archived from the original on July 28 2021 Retrieved July 28 2021 Oladipo Gloria February 28 2023 Tennessee governor to ban drag shows despite photo of him dressed in drag The Guardian Archived from the original on 28 February 2023 Retrieved 1 March 2023 Lavietes Matt February 27 2023 Tennessee governor appears to have dressed in drag an art form he wants to restrict Yahoo News NBC News Archived from the original on 1 March 2023 Retrieved 1 March 2023 Karam Alec February 27 2023 Drag Banning Tennessee Guv Shrugs Off Old Drag Pic as a Lighthearted Tradition The Daily Beast Archived from the original on 1 March 2023 Retrieved 1 March 2023 But that s different Lee s office told The Daily Beast on Monday saying that lighthearted school traditions shouldn t be conflated with the issue the state is banning Migdon Brooke March 2 2023 Tennessee enacts nation s first law restricting drag shows bans gender affirming care for youth The Hill Archived from the original on 6 March 2023 Retrieved 7 March 2023 Santucci Jeanine Brown Melissa March 2 2023 Tennessee drag show restrictions ban on gender affirming care for minors signed into law USA Today Archived from the original on 6 March 2023 Retrieved 7 March 2023 Kelman Brett Medical marijuana in Tennessee Here s what to expect with new Governor Bill Lee The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Governor Lee doubles down on his stance against marijuana decriminalization WMC Action News 5 March 8 2019 Archived from the original on May 16 2021 Retrieved June 17 2021 Millions wagered in first week of Tennessee sports gambling AP NEWS 2020 11 17 Archived from the original on 2023 02 18 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Tennessee governor allows sports betting without signature AP NEWS 2019 05 24 Archived from the original on 2022 10 04 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Gov Bill Lee Issues Executive Order Declaring State of Emergency in Response to COVID 19 tn gov March 12 2020 Archived from the original on July 2 2020 Retrieved July 1 2020 Ebert Joel April 2 2020 Gov Bill Lee orders Tennesseans to stay at home as state continues to fight spread of coronavirus The Tennessean Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved July 25 2020 Gov Bill Lee extends statewide Stay at Home order wate com April 13 2020 Archived from the original on July 25 2020 Retrieved July 25 2020 Illers Ethan July 30 2021 Governor Lee extends Tennessee s State of Emergency through Aug 31 WKRN TV Nashville Archived from the original on August 17 2021 Moore Mackenzie July 30 2021 Gov Bill Lee declares limited continuing state of emergency amid surge in COVID 19 cases statewide WJHL TV Johnson City Tennessee Archived from the original on August 17 2021 Allison Natalie December 22 2020 Gov Bill Lee extends Tennessee state of emergency through end of February The Tennessean Nashville Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Gonzales Jason March 16 2020 Gov Bill Lee urges Tennessee school districts to close through March amid coronavirus spread The Tennessean Retrieved July 1 2020 Bowles Laken April 15 2020 Tennessee schools asked to close for remainder of school year newschannel5 com Archived from the original on July 25 2020 Retrieved July 25 2020 Summers Blake October 15 2020 Governor Lee quarantined at home due to COVID 19 exposure WSMV TV Archived from the original on October 20 2020 Retrieved October 19 2020 a b Tennessee gov s office debunks COVID misinfo as cases surge AP NEWS 2021 08 13 Archived from the original on 2023 02 18 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Gov Lee issues new executive order gyms in most Tennessee counties can reopen on May 1 WBIR TV April 28 2020 Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved July 25 2020 Gov Lee lifts restrictions on businesses large gatherings in Tennessee s non metro counties extends coronavirus state of emergency Chattanooga Times Free Press www timesfreepress com 2020 09 29 Archived from the original on 2022 11 27 Retrieved 2022 11 27 Staff Action News 5 27 April 2021 Tennessee governor says COVID 19 no longer statewide public health crisis www actionnews5 com Archived from the original on 2022 10 02 Retrieved 2022 11 27 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link Gov Lee No real concern over highly contagious Delta COVID variant despite cases popping up in Tennessee WKRN News 2 2021 06 09 Archived from the original on 2023 02 18 Retrieved 2022 11 27 a b c d e Gov defends agency s vaccine chief firing outreach rollback AP NEWS 2021 07 22 Archived from the original on 2022 11 27 Retrieved 2022 11 27 a b c Yu Yue Stella As COVID 19 bounces back Gov Lee backs halting vaccine outreach for teens maintains shots are personal choice The Tennessean Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2022 11 27 How Red States Got Their Groove Back Governing 2021 07 26 Archived from the original on 2021 07 27 Retrieved 2021 07 27 Paybarah Azi Levin Dan 2021 08 16 Tennessee s governor allows parents to opt out of mask mandates at school The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on 2021 08 16 Retrieved 2021 08 17 Wegner Rachel September 10 2021 Heavy handed TN Gov Bill Lee vows to fight Biden s COVID 19 vaccine mandate for workers The Tennessean Nashville Archived from the original on March 9 2023 Retrieved September 11 2021 Timms Mariah November 15 2021 Tennessee s new law on school mask mandates remains temporarily on hold federal judge says The Tennessean Nashville Archived from the original on 2023 03 09 Retrieved 2021 11 16 Gov Lee signs bill making Tennessee the Volunteer State WVLT TV February 22 2020 Archived from the original on February 24 2020 Retrieved February 24 2020 Lee names former Democratic lawmaker DeBerry as adviser WTVF November 30 2020 Archived from the original on December 1 2020 Retrieved February 20 2021 Gov Bill Lee tours flood affected areas in west Tennessee WMC TV July 17 2019 Archived from the original on December 16 2019 Retrieved December 16 2019 Mickens Jefferson Courtney March 3 2020 Gov Bill Lee says search for survivors continues as individuals remain unaccounted for following overnight tornadoes WMC TV Archived from the original on September 1 2020 Retrieved March 4 2020 Remarks by President Trump After Surveying Tornado Damage Cookeville TN whitehouse gov Archived from the original on January 20 2021 Retrieved July 1 2020 via National Archives DeSantis is about to sign a bill banning ranked choice voting in Florida The Fulcrum 2022 03 11 Archived from the original on 2022 03 12 Retrieved 2022 03 12 August 2 2018 Republican Primary Governor PDF Tennessee Secretary of State Archived PDF from the original on May 15 2021 Retrieved September 25 2018 Nov 2018 General Totals PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2021 03 06 August 4 2022 Republican Primary Governor PDF Tennessee Secretary of State Archived PDF from the original on September 5 2022 Retrieved September 5 2022 State of Tennessee General Election Results Governor November 8 2022 Results By Office PDF Report Secretary of State of Tennessee Archived PDF from the original on January 16 2023 Retrieved January 17 2023 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bill Lee Tennessee politician Official governor website Campaign website Appearances on C SPANParty political officesPreceded byBill Haslam Republican nominee for Governor of Tennessee2018 2022 Most recentPreceded byKim Reynolds Chair of the Republican Governors Association2023 present IncumbentPolitical officesPreceded byBill Haslam Governor of Tennessee2019 present IncumbentU S order of precedence ceremonial Preceded byKamala Harrisas Vice President Order of precedence of the United StatesWithin Tennessee Succeeded byMayor of cityin which event is heldSucceeded byOtherwise Mike Johnsonas Speaker of the HousePreceded byAndy Beshearas Governor of Kentucky Order of precedence of the United StatesOutside Tennessee Succeeded byMike DeWineas Governor of Ohio Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bill Lee Tennessee politician amp oldid 1203777112, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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