Charles Van Morgan, an Independent from Knoxville, is running for Tennessee governor in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election. He faces a field that includes Marsha Blackburn (Republican) and Jerri Green (Democratic).
Morgan filed his candidacy March 4, 2026, and the Tennessee Secretary of State recorded his petition signatures as approved.
He ran for the same office in 2022 as an Independent, receiving 1,862 votes, or 0.1% of the total, according to Ballotpedia.
This is his second run.
Candidate information
- Party: Independent
- Residence: Knoxville, Tennessee
- Birthplace: Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia
- Education: Bachelor of science in business, Tennessee Wesleyan College (1995); master of arts, University of Tennessee (2001); juris doctor, Nashville School of Law (2015), according to Morgan's responses to a WJHL candidate questionnaire
Experience and public service
Morgan described his professional background in a WJHL candidate questionnaire. He said he worked in security, law enforcement, police and corrections from 1989 to 2001. He said he then served as a state trooper with the Tennessee Highway Patrol from 2001 to 2012. Morgan said he has owned Safe Taxi, a business, since 2014.
On the issues
The following positions are drawn from Morgan's responses to a WJHL candidate questionnaire.
Government accountability and public corruption
Morgan said his top priority is giving the government back to the people of Tennessee. He said he would hold weekly meetings in different cities across the state to listen to residents. He also said he would create a special prosecutor's office to investigate and prosecute government officials who violate the public trust, including Tennessee judges and politicians.
Healthcare
Morgan said he supports accepting federal Medicaid expansion money. He also said he would subsidize free welfare healthcare charities and decriminalize marijuana, using the resulting tax revenue to build what he called "a healthcare infrastructure for all Tennesseans."
Other candidates in the race
The Nov. 3, 2026, general election for Tennessee governor also includes Marsha Blackburn (Republican), Jerri Green (Democratic), Dave Seeman (Independent), David Hatley (Independent), Dean Brewer (Independent), Eddie Lee Murphy (Independent), Karl Knox Smithson (Independent), L. Webb Taylor (Independent), Lauren Pinkston (Independent), Misam Abidi (Independent), Ray Brown (Independent), Robert C. Vick (Independent), Victor L. Scoggin (Independent) and Wendell Jackson (Independent).
Candidate responses referenced in this profile were collected by WJHL through its "Meet the Candidates" questionnaire series. The Mt. Juliet Journal did not interview the candidate.
