Jack JohnsonRepublican · incumbent
Franklin · Campaign website
Facts
- State Senator representing most of Williamson County since his 2006 election; Senate Majority Leader since December 2018.[3] [4]
- Earlier chaired the Senate Government Operations Committee and, for nine years, the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee.[3]
- More than 20 years in the financial industry, including as a senior vice president at Studio Bank; now works in public relations for a Fortune 500 company.[3]
- Graduate of Texas State University with a degree in education.[3]
Why they're running
His campaign says he has represented the state's values since he was first elected and that he fights to lower taxes, defend constitutional rights, secure the southern border, protect the most vulnerable, and make sure parents have a voice in their children's education.[3] [5]
Platform
- Taxes & spending
- Keep Tennessee one of the lowest-taxed states by cutting government waste and unnecessary regulation; co-sponsored the constitutional amendment banning a state income tax.[2]
- Education
- Supports universal school choice and parental control over children's education; sponsored legislation creating a statewide Public Charter School Commission.[2]
- Health care
- Oppose vaccine and mask mandates; sponsored laws protecting workers who decline vaccines and barring denial of organ transplants based on vaccination status.[2]
- Immigration
- Sponsored SB 6002, which holds officials accountable for sanctuary policies and created a state immigration enforcement division to work with federal authorities; supports requiring employers to verify workers' legal status.[2]
- Firearms
- Oppose any effort to weaken gun rights; sponsored the permitless carry law and a law barring financial institutions from tracking firearm purchases, and backed tougher penalties for firearm theft and illegal possession by felons.[2]
- Abortion
- Describes himself as 100% pro-life; supported the state's Human Life Protection Act and wants to strengthen foster care and adoption.[2]
- Government & elections
- Sponsored laws requiring post-election audits and voter-verified paper records, supports voter ID, and is co-sponsoring legislation to create party registration for primaries.[2]
Arguments
Arguments for
- Bills he sponsored added random post-election audits and required voting machines to produce a voter-verified paper audit trail, which he says have made the state's elections among the most secure in the nation.[2]
- He has a long record of passing laws, including tougher penalties for child rape, measures against human trafficking, and permitless carry, and he holds an A+ rating from a national gun-rights group.[2] [3]
- As majority leader he has helped make Tennessee the lowest-taxed and least-indebted state in the nation, and he has long fought against a state income tax.[2] [3]
Arguments against
- A bill he sponsored would keep secret the names of all officers involved in immigration enforcement with no end date; critics say this sacrifices transparency and that "secrecy can protect bad actors."[6]