David Hatley, an independent candidate with no party affiliation, is running for Tennessee governor in the Nov. 3 general election. He has no donors. He has loaned his campaign $7 million and spent just under $1 million on advertising, the Nashville Banner reported.

Hatley shares the ballot with Marsha Blackburn (Republican), Jerri Green (Democratic) and other independents: Charles Van Morgan, Dave Seeman, Dean Brewer, Eddie Lee Murphy, Karl Knox Smithson, L. Webb Taylor, Lauren Pinkston, Misam Abidi, Ray Brown, Robert C. Vick, Victor L. Scoggin and Wendell Jackson, according to BallotReady election data.

Candidate information

  • Office sought: Tennessee governor
  • Election date: Nov. 3, 2026
  • Party: Independent
  • Raised in: Elizabethton, Tennessee (Carter County), according to his campaign website
  • Current role: Chief executive officer of Whisper, LLC (since 2009), according to BallotReady
  • Business background: Hatley said on his campaign website he has built nine companies, holds 11 patents and operates 740,000 square feet of Tennessee manufacturing. He said his hot tub company is the No. 1 hot tub manufacturer in America and employs approximately 750 Tennessee workers.

Experience and public service

Hatley said he started his first business at twelve and opened his first retail store at eighteen. He said he rebuilt after the 2008 financial crisis and established an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, or ESOP, so workers could become owners, according to his campaign website.

On the issues

The following positions are drawn from Hatley's campaign website responses. Each reflects the candidate's own statements.

Affordable housing. Hatley said Tennessee is roughly 120,000 starter homes short. He said he would provide state infrastructure grants for water, sewer and road work in exchange for communities setting aside 5% to 10% of new developments for homes priced at $250,000 or less. He also said he would roll back building code changes that added cost without meaningfully improving safety.

Data centers and economic development. Hatley said he would impose a moratorium on new data center approvals until the state writes new rules. He said he would end payments in lieu of taxes, known as PILOTs, and tax abatements for data centers. He said at least half of new tax revenue from data centers would go to cutting property taxes for homeowners in the host county. Companies would pay for their own power and water infrastructure under his plan.

Education and workforce. Hatley said his goal is for Tennessee to reach the top 10 nationally in reading within four years, measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP. He said he would place full-time reading coaches in the 100 lowest-performing elementary schools. On workforce training, he said he would end waitlists in the five highest-demand Tennessee College of Applied Technology, or TCAT, programs and double registered apprenticeships in four years.

Government accountability. Hatley said he would create an independent, nonpartisan state auditor elected statewide, required to hold a CPA or equivalent credentials, with authority to conduct forensic and performance audits, subpoena records and protect whistleblowers. He also said he would rebuild the state's spending portal so every legally disclosable contract, grant and payment is posted within 30 days.

Public safety. Hatley said he would clear the state crime-lab backlog, expand the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's violent-crime team and give rural sheriffs regional investigators with same-day state assistance. On the opioid crisis, he said he would triple the TBI's drug division from 48 to approximately 150 agents.

Candidate responses were drawn from Hatley's campaign website and BallotReady questionnaire data. This profile is part of the Journal's 2026 election coverage. Content is AI-curated and human-edited.