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State of Tennessee
Carol Swain
Governor of Tennessee (2026 R Candidate · former Vanderbilt prof · 2018 + 2023 Nashville mayor candidate)
Republican
RESOLUTE Citizen Score
100
/ 100
A
Raw: 88 of 88 dynamic max
· 44 of 49 answered
State tier49 of 50 rubric questions apply at this office level — federal-only questions are marked N/A and excluded from the dynamic max. How tier grading works →
Last verified: · from claim evidence
✝ God First
60/ 70
🏛️ State First
28/ 30
National Rank
#19 of 8,966 · top 0.2% among candidates with at least one scored answer
See the full rankings →Contact This Official
Reach out directly. Your voice matters. Proverbs 29:2 — When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice.
Next Election
August 4, 2026
Primary · Seat up at next election
— until
Official Profile
Former Vanderbilt political science professor. 2018 + 2023 R candidate for Nashville mayor. R primary candidate for TN Governor 2026.
Category Breakdown
Candidate affirms life begins at conception and personhood from conception
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for or sponsored state legislation moving toward abortion abolition (e.g., heartbeat ban, total ban) — not merely restrictions
TRUE (+2)
Candidate opposes state funding for embryonic stem-cell research and supports state IVF embryo-protection laws
TRUE (+2)
Candidate opposes state physician-assisted suicide laws and opposes state Medicaid death-panel rationing
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has never accepted abortion-industry PAC funding for state-legislative or statewide-office campaigns
TRUE (+2)
Candidate affirms marriage as exclusively the lifelong union of one man and one woman as instituted by God
TRUE (+2)
1 claim
Author of 'Countercultural Living: What Jesus Has to Say About Life, Marriage, Race, Gender, and Materialism' (2017), Swain has consistently argued that marriage is a lifelong covenant between one man and one woman defined by Scripture — a public, authored commitment to the one-man-one-woman standard.
- WikipediaEncyclopedia
- BallotpediaCenter
Candidate opposes state recognition of same-sex marriage / civil unions / domestic partnerships, and supports state non-recognition resolutions where federally permitted
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for state legislation affirming biological sex (bathroom/locker access, sports participation, minor gender-procedure bans)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate supports state no-fault divorce reform and pro-marriage policy (covenant marriage option, waiting periods, etc.)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate opposes promotion of LGBTQ+ identity in state-funded schools, state agencies, and state corporate-partnership programs
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for state school-choice (vouchers, ESAs, charter expansion) and supports state homeschool freedom statutes
TRUE (+2)
1 claim
Co-chairwoman of President Trump's 1776 Commission (2020-21), whose founding report explicitly repudiated critical race theory and called for restoring traditional civic and moral education — a direct defense of parental rights and family sovereignty against ideological capture of schools.
- WikipediaEncyclopedia
- BallotpediaCenter
Candidate has voted for state law requiring parental notification + consent on minors' medical, mental-health, and gender interventions (incl. school counseling referrals)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for state law restricting CRT/SOGI/comprehensive-sex-ed/gender-ideology curricula in K-12
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for state age-verification laws on pornographic content and state criminal penalties for sexualizing minors
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for state RFRA-style protections for faith-based adoption + foster agencies; opposes state-mandated SS-couple placement
TRUE (+2)
Candidate affirms the right to publicly profess Christ in all spheres (workplace, military, public office, schools)
TRUE (+2)
1 claim
A Southern Baptist, Swain left the Democratic Party in 2009 after her Christian faith led her to reexamine her worldview; she has since built an entire public ministry and author career on applying biblical principles to law, politics, and culture — embodying the rubric's demand that Christian conscience, not government preference, govern public life.
- WikipediaEncyclopedia
- BallotpediaCenter
Candidate has voted for state conscience-exemption laws (state RFRA, medical-professional carve-outs, business-owner protections)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate opposes state-level pronoun mandates + state 'hate speech' laws restricting Christian conviction
TRUE (+2)
Candidate supports state public-square Christian display protections + state legislative prayer + state Sunday-closure laws
TRUE (+2)
Candidate opposes state-funded promotion of non-Christian religious displays/curricula/holidays in state institutions
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state law protecting cash as legal tender, opposing state-level CBDC pilot programs, and protecting crypto-as-property status
TRUE (+2)
Candidate supports sound-money policies including gold/silver as constitutional money and audit/abolition of the Federal Reserve
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state balanced-budget compliance + opposed state borrowing for non-capital expenditures
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted for state usury caps + state predatory-lending protections + state charitable-deduction parity
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state pension/treasury divestment from ESG-aligned funds (e.g., BlackRock) + state anti-monopoly enforcement against financial cartels
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state SoS/legislature) has voted for state hand-count requirements / opposed electronic voting machines
Not yet verified
Candidate (state SoS/legislature) has voted for state photo voter ID + citizenship verification at registration
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has voted to restrict state early-voting windows + tighten state absentee qualifications to verified medical/military
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted against state mass mail-in voting expansion, against state drop-box deployment, and against legalizing ballot harvesting
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state SoS/legislature) has voted to ban state acceptance of private election grants ('Zuckerbucks') + state penalties for foreign interference
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted for state-funded border-security measures (e.g., TX Operation Lone Star analog, AZ wall expansion)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted for state laws requiring local cooperation with ICE deportation enforcement
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted to preempt or punish sanctuary-city policies + ban state cities from declaring sanctuary status
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted for state E-Verify mandate (beyond federal floor) for state employers + state-benefit eligibility verification
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted to restrict foreign ownership of state farmland (e.g., China-buyer prohibitions)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate supports constitutional carry without permit requirements
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted against state red-flag laws, mag-capacity limits, AWBs, and registries (or voted to repeal where enacted)
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted for state constitutional-carry statute
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted against state universal-background-check schemes
TRUE (+2)
Candidate (state) has voted to enact / strengthen state Castle Doctrine + stand-your-ground statute
TRUE (+2)
Candidate has publicly backed law enforcement and opposed defunding/dismantling police
TRUE (+2)
Candidate opposes cashless-bail, soft-on-crime, and rogue-prosecutor (e.g. Soros-DA) policy
TRUE (+2)
Candidate supports victim restitution and proportional punishment of evildoers
TRUE (+2)
Candidate refuses to treat violent crime as a "public health" excuse to avoid punishment
TRUE (+2)
Candidate affirms the magistrate's God-ordained duty to bear the sword (Rom. 13:4)
TRUE (+2)
Official has voted for or sponsored 10th-Amendment nullification or anti-commandeering measures
TRUE (+2)
Official has declined unconstitutional federal mandates or federal strings on the state
TRUE (+2)
Official has resisted federal overreach on guns, life, education, or religious liberty
TRUE (+2)
Official affirms state sovereignty against unconstitutional federal action
TRUE (+2)
Official has opposed federal capture of state elections, data, or land
Not yet verified
Sources & Evidence
Ballotpedia ProfileCenter
Bias ratings sourced from AllSides and Ad Fontes Media. Classifications for government, reference, and advocacy domains are maintained by U.S.M.C. Ministries; see source_bias.json.
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