Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Haslam brought his 650-day-old campaign to Chattanooga today to urge voters to go to the polls early for the Nov. 2 election.
Early voting starts today at designated polling places across Tennessee and Haslam said he expects nearly half of all voters will cast ballots before election day. During campaign stops at Wally’s restaurant in East Ridge and at a row of Market Street restaurants in downtown Chattanooga, Haslam shook hands, handed out stickers and appealed for votes in Tennessee’s gubernatorial contest.
Haslam, a former Pilot Corp. executive who has served as Knoxville mayor for the past seven years, began his gubernatorial campaign nearly two years ago and said he plans “to finish as strong as I can in the final three weeks.”
Haslam volunteers made 87,000 phone calls to potential voters last week to get out the Republican vote.
Haslam is facing Demcrat Mike McWherter, a businessman from Jackson, Tenn., to succeed retiring Gov. Phil Bredesen, a Democrat.