Tennessee State Senate District 15
Tennessee State Senate District 15 is represented by Paul Bailey (R).
As of the 2020 Census, Tennessee state senators represented an average of 209,603 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 193,195 residents.
About the chamber
Members of the Tennessee State Senate serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Tennessee legislators assume office on the day they are elected in the general election.[1]
Qualifications
To be eligible to serve in the Tennessee State Senate, a candidate must:[2]
- Be a U.S. citizen
- Be at least 30 years old before the general election
- Have resided in Tennessee for at least 3 years before the general election
- Have resided in the county or district to be represented for at least 1 year, immediately preceding the election
- Be a qualified voter in the county or district to be represented
The following groups of people are ineligible to run for office:[2]
- Those who have been convicted of offering or giving a bribe, or of larceny, or any other offense declared infamous by law, unless restored to citizenship in the mode pointed out by law;
- Those against whom there is a judgment unpaid for any moneys received by them, in any official capacity, due to the United States, to this state, or any county thereof;
- Those who are defaulters to the treasury at the time of the election (the election of any such person shall be void);
- Soldiers, seamen, marines, or airmen in the regular army or navy or air force of the United States; and
- Members of congress, and persons holding any office of profit or trust under any foreign power, other state of the union, or under the United States.
Salaries
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2025[3] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $33,060/year | $379.44/day. Legislators living within 50 miles of the Capitol receive a reduced amount of $86 per day. |
Vacancies
If there is a vacancy in the Tennessee General Assembly, there are two ways a vacancy can be filled. When twelve months or more remain before the next general election, a special election must be held within the allowable time frame set by law. If fewer than twelve months remain before the next general election, members of the legislative body in the county where the vacancy occurred must vote on a replacement.[4]
See sources: Tennessee Const. Art. 2, Sec. 15
District map
Redistricting
2020 redistricting cycle
On December 10, 2025, the Tennessee Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's state legislative maps.[5] On November 22, 2023, the Davidson County Chancery Court had struck down the state Senate map, declaring it unconstitutional. The court ordered the state to create a new state Senate map by January 31, 2024.[6] On April 13, 2022, the Tennessee Supreme Court reversed a ruling by the Davidson County Chancery Court on April 6, blocking the same state Senate map. Gov. Lee signed the state's legislative districts into law on February 6, 2022.[7]
On January 18, 2022, the Senate Judiciary Committee recommended state legislative proposals for consideration by the full Senate in a 7-2 vote along party lines, with all Republicans supporting the proposals and all Democrats opposing them.[8] The Senate approved proposals for congressional and Senate maps in a 26-5 party-line vote on January 20, 2022.[9] On January 26, 2022, the Tennessee Senate approved the state House plan.[10] These maps took effect for Tennessee's 2022 legislative elections.
On December 14, 2021, the Senate Ad-Hoc Committee on Redistricting released five state Senate plans and four congressional plans submitted by the public.[11] The Tennessee House Select Committee on Redistricting voted to approve a proposal for House districts, HB 1035, on December 17, 2021.[12] The ad-hoc Senate committee released a state Senate plan on January 13.[13]
How does redistricting in Tennessee work? In Tennessee, both congressional and state legislative district boundaries are drawn by the state legislature. These lines are subject to veto by the governor.[14]
The Tennessee Constitution requires that state Senate districts "preserve counties whole where possible." State statutes mandate that no more than 30 counties may be split across districts. Furthermore, state law requires that state legislative districts be contiguous. There are no such requirements in place for congressional districts.[14]
Tennessee State Senate District 15
until November 7, 2022
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Tennessee State Senate District 15
starting November 8, 2022
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Elections
2026
See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2026
General election
The primary will occur on August 6, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Republican primary
Republican primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15
Incumbent Paul Bailey (R) is running in the Republican primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15 on August 6, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Paul Bailey | |
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2022
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Tennessee State Senate District 15
Incumbent Paul Bailey won election in the general election for Tennessee State Senate District 15 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Paul Bailey (R) | 100.0 | 45,978 |
| Total votes: 45,978 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15
Incumbent Paul Bailey advanced from the Republican primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15 on August 4, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Paul Bailey | 100.0 | 20,785 |
| Total votes: 20,785 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2018
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2018
General election
General election for Tennessee State Senate District 15
Incumbent Paul Bailey defeated Angela Hedgecough in the general election for Tennessee State Senate District 15 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Paul Bailey (R) | 73.6 | 48,919 |
| Angela Hedgecough (D) | 26.4 | 17,512 | ||
| Total votes: 66,431 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15
Angela Hedgecough advanced from the Democratic primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15 on August 2, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Angela Hedgecough | 100.0 | 7,636 | |
| Total votes: 7,636 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15
Incumbent Paul Bailey advanced from the Republican primary for Tennessee State Senate District 15 on August 2, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Paul Bailey | 100.0 | 25,808 |
| Total votes: 25,808 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2014
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for 18 seats in the Tennessee State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 7, 2014. A general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 3, 2014. Betty Vaudt was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Paul Bailey defeated Gary Steakley and Matt Swallows in the Republican primary. William Draper ran as an independent candidate. Bailey defeated Vaudt and Draper in the general election.[15][16]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Paul Bailey |
73.3% | 33,674 | |
| Democratic | Betty Vaudt | 22.3% | 10,263 | |
| Independent | William L. Draper | 4.4% | 2,022 | |
| Total Votes | 45,959 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Paul Bailey |
48.4% | 13,141 |
| Matt Swallows | 46.3% | 12,577 |
| Gary Steakley | 5.3% | 1,453 |
| Total Votes | 27,171 | |
2010
- See also: Tennessee State Senate elections, 2010
Elections for the office of Tennessee State Senate consisted of a primary election on August 5, 2010, and a general election on November 2, 2010. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 1, 2010. Incumbent Charlotte Burks (D) defeated Gary Steakley (R) and Joe Wilmoth (I) in the general election. Burks and Steakley were unopposed in their respective primaries.[17]
| Tennessee State Senate, District 15, General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Charlotte Burks Incumbent |
42.1% | 22,800 | |
| Republican | Gary Steakley | 41.7% | 22,615 | |
| Independent | Joe Wilmoth | 16.2% | 8,779 | |
| Total Votes | 54,194 | |||
Campaign contributions
From 2002 to 2022, candidates for Tennessee State Senate District 15 raised a total of $1,636,825. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $96,284 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money
| Campaign contributions, Tennessee State Senate District 15 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Amount | Candidates | Average |
| 2022 | $440,264 | 1 | $440,264 |
| 2018 | $354,055 | 2 | $177,027 |
| 2014 | $493,010 | 5 | $98,602 |
| 2012 | $18,883 | 1 | $18,883 |
| 2010 | $152,007 | 3 | $50,669 |
| 2008 | $6,741 | 1 | $6,741 |
| 2006 | $77,267 | 2 | $38,634 |
| 2002 | $94,598 | 2 | $47,299 |
| Total | $1,636,825 | 17 | $96,284 |
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Tennessee Constitution, "Article II, Section 3," accessed November 1, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Tennessee Secretary of State, "Qualifications for elected offices in Tennessee," accessed May 23, 2025
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2025 Legislator Compensation," December 2, 2025
- ↑ Tennessee Legislature, "Tennessee Constitution," accessed May 22, 2014 (Article II, Section 15)
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedsuitend - ↑ The Tennessean, "Judges rule Tennessee Senate map unconstitutional, order legislature to redraw by Jan. 31," November 22, 2023
- ↑ The Tennessean, "Gov. Bill Lee signs redistricting bills dividing Davidson County into three congressional districts," February 7, 2022
- ↑ Washington Examiner, "Tennessee redistricting maps sent to full Senate for vote," January 19, 2022
- ↑ The Tennessean, "Tennessee senators approve new congressional, Senate districts; House to vote Monday," January 20, 2022
- ↑ The Tennessean, "Senate clears final redistricting map, Memphis and Knoxville House Democrats drawn together," January 26, 2022
- ↑ The Tennessean, "Senate redistricting panel hears public proposals without releasing committee draft," December 14, 2021
- ↑ Williamson Herald, "Tennessee House panel adopts new redistricting plan," December 20, 2021
- ↑ Axios, "Subdued Tennessee Senate redistricting maps released," January 14, 2022
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 All About Redistricting, "Tennessee," accessed May 5, 2015
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "August 7, 2014 Election Results," accessed September 11, 2014
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "Petitions Filed for State Senate and State House of Representatives," accessed April 5, 2014
- ↑ "Official State Senate Results, 2010," accessed October 24, 2013
