East Tennessee Republican runs for governor to topple “Nashville establishment”
Tennessee Lookout

Taking a shot at the political “establishment” in Tennessee’s Capitol, state Rep. Monty Fritts announced he is entering the governor’s 2026 race to cut spending and end government “overreach.”

Fritts is basing his candidacy on a move toward greater “liberty and less government” after recently criticizing the state attorney general’s appeal of a court ruling that would overturn the state’s “intent to go armed” law and guns-in-parks prohibition.

“While the Nashville establishment, the celebrity political body, seeks to take more of your money and redistribute it as corporate welfare or in socialist-leaning programs, I think Tennesseans are better off keeping more of their money and making their own decisions, their own medical decisions, health-care decisions, parenting decisions,” the Kingston Republican said in a video unveiling his candidacy.

Fritts, an Army veteran who retired from the nuclear industry, enters the Republican primary race as an underdog to U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Franklin and U.S. Rep. John Rose of Cookeville, both of whom have more name recognition and financial pull. Fritts acknowledged in his video he doesn’t have the $25 million it could take to win the governor’s race and said the “prideful and arrogant class” in Tennessee’s capital city will try to “destroy” his movement and push for more regulations and taxes to fund “corporate welfare” and social programs.

“We face an embedded political class, Nashville establishment, celebrity class that says people like me, people like us, my neighbors, we shouldn’t run for offices like this because we’re not well connected enough in D.C., Hollywood or Nashville,” he said in the video.

Fritts said his plan is to curb the growth of Tennessee’s budget, which he said has increased 59% in the last six years, “recalibrate” state government to make sure commissioners and lawmakers work within bounds of the Constitution, not for special interest groups and powerful lobbies; and suspend “power-grab schemes” that enable bureaucrats to make decisions.

In addition to trimming the budget, Fritts said he would eliminate the state’s 4% sales tax on groceries.

Fritts voted against the governor’s private-school voucher bill when it narrowly passed the House this year and said on his campaign website he would suspend the program that provides funds for private-school enrollment and end “fiscally irresponsible, unconstitutional voucher programs.”

He also said the state should challenge Plyler v. Doe, a court ruling that requires schools to accept students even if they don’t have permanent citizenship status.

Fritts’ website says he would protect life beginning at conception. He voted against a measure this year that guarantees women the right to in vitro fertilization and contraception.

The second-term lawmaker gained a bit of notoriety in 2024 when he passed legislation designed to stop the potential release of climate-controlling chemicals into Tennessee’s atmosphere. Fritts said at the time the measure dealt only with “geoengineering,” the release or injection of chemicals to affect the weather, purportedly to be done by the federal government and noted he wasn’t concerned about a connection to “chemtrail” conspiracy theories.

Fritts said last week he sent letters to Gov. Bill Lee and Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti that challenged their decision to appeal a Chancery Court ruling that found the state’s “intent to go armed” law and prohibitions on guns in parks were illegal. He gained support from several Republican lawmakers who signed the letters.

Fritts reported a balance of $11,050 in his state House campaign account with a $15,000 self-endorsed loan. Having just announced his gubernatorial candidacy, he has filed with the Registry of Election Finance but hasn’t turned in any financial reports.