So I live in Knoxville, Tennessee. Knoxville is part of Knox County. As part of the Great Sort, the city has become more Democratic, and the County has become more Republican. (Though the city was always a Democratic enclave — even during the Civil War the city proper was a center of support for the Confederacy, even as most of East Tennessee was strongly pro-Union.)
Nonetheless, the city still has a large minority of Republicans. And since city elections — which are in an off-year cycle that does not coincide with federal or statewide races — have very low turnout, a large minority could win, if you could just get a substantial portion to vote. Sadly, that hasn’t been happening.
Knoxville has approximately 97,856 registered voters (as of late 2025). The 2023 Knoxville mayoral primary (the last contested mayor’s race) saw only 16,400 votes cast (17% turnout). Knox County as a whole has ~318,000 registered voters, but county commission and other local races in off-years often see turnout in the teens or low 20s percent in individual districts.
Because elections are nonpartisan (there is no party registration in Tennessee), outcomes depend on who shows up. Knoxville city races tend to favor progressive/Dem-leaning candidates in low-turnout environments, while the broader county leans Republican. Conservative/GOP-aligned candidates often underperform relative to their strength in high-turnout races because their base (more suburban or conservative voters) participates less in purely local contests. Increasing GOP turnout—by mobilizing their potential voters while assuming opponent turnout stays roughly stable—can flip races with relatively modest absolute gains due to the small number of total votes cast.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member