The government of Tennessee is organized under the provisions of the 1870 Constitution of Tennessee, first adopted in 1796. As set forth by the state constitution, Tennessee's government is divided into three branches: executive, judicial, and legislative branches. The seat of the government in Tennessee is in its capital city of Nashville.
The current Lieutenant Governor is Randy McNally. He was elected on January 10, 2017 and is the second, consecutive Republican to hold the office.
Cabinet Members
Lang Wiseman - Deputy to the Governor and Chief Counsel Blake Harris - Chief of Staff in the Governor's Office Butch Eley - Chief Operating Officer in the Governor's Office Chris Devaney - Special Assistant to the Governor Brandon Gibson - Senior Advisor in the Governor's Office Chris Walker - Communications Director and Senior Advisor in the Governor's Office Tony Niknejad - Policy Director Charlie Hatcher - Commissioner of Agriculture Jennifer Nichols - Commissioner of Children's Services Julie Mix McPeak - Commissioner of Commerce & Insurance Tony C. Parker - Commissioner of Correction Brad Turner - Commissioner of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Bob Rolfe - Commissioner of Department of Economic and Community Development Penny Schwinn - Commissioner of Education David Salyers - Commissioner of Environment and Conservation Stuart McWhorter - Commissioner of Finance & Administration Greg Gonzales - Commissioner of Financial Institutions Christi Branscom - Commissioner of General Services Lisa Piercey - Commissioner of Health Juan Williams - Commissioner of Human Resources Danielle Barnes - Commissioner of Human Services Jeff McCord - Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Marie Williams - Commissioner of Mental Health Jeff Holmes - Commissioner of the Military David Gerregano - Commissioner of Revenue Jeff Long - Commissioner of Safety and Homeland Security Gabe Roberts - Director of TennCare Mark Ezell - Commissioner of Tourism Clay Bright - Commissioner of Transportation Courtney Rogers - Commissioner of Veterans
Legislative branch
The Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature, consists of the 33-member Senate and the 99-member House of Representatives. Senators serve four-year terms, and House members serve two-year terms. Each chamber chooses its own speaker, e.g., the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the Senate of Tennessee is elected by the Senate from among its members. Constitutional officials in the legislative branch are elected by a joint session of the legislature.
Judicial branch
Supreme Court{{Cite web|url=https://www.tncourts.gov/courts/supreme-court|title=Supreme Court Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts|website=www.tncourts.gov|access-date=2019-04-02}}
The Supreme Court of Tennessee is known as the “Court of Last Resort.” It composed of a chief justice and four associate justices. No more than two justices can be from the same Grand Division. As required by the Tennessee Constitution, the Supreme Court regularly meets in Jackson, Knoxville, and Nashville. In addition to the regular meetings of the Supreme Court, the Court takes their oral arguments on the road as part of the SCALES program a few times each year. The Supreme Court of Tennessee also appoints the Attorney General, a practice that is not found in any of the other 49 states in the Union. The Attorney General of Tennessee is the chief legal officer of the state, and "represents state officers and agencies through his staff of approximately 340 employees working in five offices across Tennessee".
Intermediate Appellate Courts
The intermediate appellate courts of Tennessee include the court of appeals and the court of criminal appeals. The court of appeals hears cases appealed from probate, chancery, and circuit courts, whereas the court of criminal appeals hears cases appealed from circuit and criminal courts. Both the and the have 12 judges.
Trial Courts
Trial courts in the state of Tennessee include probate courts, chancery courts, circuit courts, and criminal courts. The circuit courts, chancery and probate courts, and criminal courts each have 31 judicial districts.
