Eddie Lee Murphy
Independent candidate
Eddie Lee Murphy is an independent candidate for governor on the general election ballot. Independent candidates qualify by petition rather than through a primary: 25 registered voters' signatures, filed with the Secretary of State by the March 10, 2026 deadline. Murphy filed on February 17, 2026 and lives in Spring Hill.
Spring Hill, Maury
No TREF disclosure on file at last refresh
Who they are
Murphy was one of eight Republican candidates in the October 7, 2025 special-election contest for Tennessee's 7th Congressional District, a different office in a different year. He did not complete Ballotpedia's candidate survey for that race. Politics1 identifies him by that 2025 congressional candidacy and lists no other occupation. Like every independent on the November ballot, he took no part in the 2026 governor primaries and qualified by petition.
Source: Ballotpedia (2025-10-07); Politics1
Why they are running
TNFirefly could not source any statement by Murphy explaining why he is running for governor. No campaign website or published platform could be located.
Where they stand on education
TNFirefly could not source any statement by Murphy on schools, vouchers, school funding, or teachers.
How they qualified
Independents do not run in a primary. They reach the general election ballot by petition, which in Tennessee means gathering 25 valid voter signatures and filing by the qualifying deadline of March 10, 2026. Eddie Lee Murphy filed from Spring Hill on February 17, 2026, and the Secretary of State recorded the petition signatures as approved.
Searched for campaign materials, Spring Hill and Maury County coverage, and candidate questionnaires from both the 2025 congressional race and this one. None carrying his own words were located.
Sources
- 1. Politics1, Tennessee 2026 Elections
- 2. Ballotpedia, Tennessee's 7th Congressional District special election, 2025 (October 7 Republican primary) (2025-10-07)
- 3. Tennessee Secretary of State, 2026 candidate lists (certified qualified candidates for governor)
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About this tracker
This tracker is produced by The Tennessee Firefly, an independent, nonpartisan news outlet covering education and government in Tennessee. We don't endorse candidates. We don't take political ads. We follow the money, the policy, and the people who shape your kids' schools. All data comes from official filings, verified reporting, and on-the-record sources, with freshness timestamps visible on every page that surfaces live data.