(The Center Square) – A poll released Thursday by the Beacon Center shows that while Tennesseans said they support the U.S. Department of Education, half of them want to eliminate it.
Of the 50% who support its elimination, 53% were Republicans, 40% were Democrats and 10% were independent voters.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order in March that would close the federal education department.
“While a plurality of voters (40%) have a favorable opinion of the Department of Education, most voters want it eliminated,” said Mark Cunningham, Beacon’s senior fellow for public opinion. “It’s clear that most Tennesseans believe the government should have some role in education, but most prefer that it be done at the state level, even if they have a positive opinion of the Department of Education generally.”
Gov. Bill Lee was popular among those polled, surpassing President Donald Trump in popularity. The poll shows 59% approve of the job Lee is doing while 34% do not.
Trump unsurprisingly received high marks from Republicans and low marks from Democrats. About 10% of the 600 Republicans polled strongly or somewhat disapproved of Trump’s performance as president while just 4% of the 330 Democrats who responded approved or somewhat approved.
Among independents, 57% somewhat or strongly disapproved of the president while 41% said they approve. Two percent of the 270 independent voters polled had no opinion.
U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., received 51% of positive responses on the job she is doing in the Senate, while 38% disapproved.
The organization also asked respondents about their support of two amendments that will appear on the November 2026 ballot.
One would allow judges to deny bail to defendants charged with crimes including rape and terrorism. Seventy-five percent of respondents said they would vote for the amendment while just 12% were opposed. The remaining 11% were undecided.
An amendment that would ban statewide property taxes received a favorable vote from 61% of respondents, while 19% said they were not in favor of it. The rest were undecided.
“Democrats (+28%), independents (+47%), and Republicans (+46%) are all in favor of banning a statewide property tax,” Beacon Center said in a release.
