Marsha Blackburn and Gloria Johnson aren't yet opponents, but they are acting the part

U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn is a Trump-supporting, Fox News and social media firebrand, who frequently touts “Tennessee values” and skewers the left-wing agenda.

She is also a member of Congress who has worked on bipartisan legislation with Democratic colleagues such as the late Diane Feinstein from California and Richard Blumenthal from Connecticut on issues ranging from celebrating women’s suffrage to protecting children from online exploitation and abuse.

State Rep. Gloria Johnson is a member of the famed “Tennessee Three” who frequently irritates Republican colleagues, declares the death of democracy under GOP-dominated rule and often tweets at Speaker Cameron Sexton with the clown face emoji.

She’s also a thoughtful advocate for public education and keeping children safe from gun violence.

I have encountered both sides of their personalities through their public statements, but also in interviewing them in the past: Blackburn on the Tennessee Voices podcast I hosted in 2020 and Johnson in a Twitter Spaces conversation in 2022.

This is not about both-sides-ism, but rather about describing the challenge of standing out in politics today where sound bites and radical statements get attention despite how serious a candidate might otherwise be.

Right now, their focus is on the showmanship, and they are lobbing barbs at each other nearly a year before the August 2024 primary election.

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GOP and Democratic nominees will be elected on Aug. 1, 2024

While it’s unlikely that Blackburn will have any serious challengers in the Republican primary, Johnson is not yet guaranteed the Democratic nomination.

As citizens learned in 2020, being the most funded and most known candidate in elite political circles doesn’t guarantee a spot in the general election.

Attorney and combat veteran James Mackler learned that lesson when he campaigned as if he were facing a Republican challenger in the seat left open by retired U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander in 2020.

Although he raised $2.1 million, he came in third place.

The Democratic primary winner was Marquita Bradshaw, an environmental activist from Memphis, who raised $8,420.

She lost to now-Sen. Bill Hagerty, but she wants another chance at a Senate seat and has put her hat in the ring for 2024.

Johnson of Knoxville and Blackburn of Brentwood should not dismiss the Memphis vote. West Tennessee votes matters.

Whoever wins the Democratic primary will need to be dominant in the small, but strong blue portions of the state including Memphis and Nashville.

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A motive behind running against Blackburn might be to wound her

But let’s assume that Johnson, because of her recent national fame and fundraising acumen from nearly getting expelled from the legislature last spring, along with Reps. Justin Jones, D-Nashville, and Justin Pearson, D-Memphis (who did get expelled but were reinstated and handily reelected), is nominated, she clearly knows she is at a disadvantage.

And maybe that’s the point.

She has won and lost elections and has entered a race in a state where more than 60% of Tennessee voters selected Donald Trump for president in both 2016 and 2020.

A victory for Johnson so far is that she has triggered Blackburn into acknowledging her as a threat and attacking her before they are even officially opponents.

Johnson may be able to sufficiently wound the incumbent senator to force a real conversation and a real competition next year.

Both women are fighters who will give voters quite a show.

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Will they be able to show accomplishments? Will that matter to voters?

The question is will either be able to show any substantive legislative accomplishments that made life better for Tennesseans during their time in office.

They have the political advantage of being in the minority party of their respective chambers – the U.S. Senate and the Tennessee House of Representatives – so they can campaign on bucking the system even as they have both been in a politics for a while.

And there’s the rub. From Memphis to Mountain City, Tennesseans are not a monolithic group, but citizens in each city and county want a senator who will represent their interests and values.

The advantage of a good campaign that shows distinction between the candidates is that voters get a chance to fully review their statements and records of accomplishment.

After the primary, the nominees should debate each other and make the best case for who ought to represent Tennessee in Washington in 2025. Tennesseans deserve no less.

David Plazas is the director of opinion and engagement for the USA TODAY Network Tennessee. He is an editorial board member of The Tennessean. He hosts the Tennessee Voices videocast and curates the Tennessee Voices and Latino Tennessee Voices newsletters.. Call him at (615) 259-8063, email him at dplazas@tennessean.com or tweet to him at @davidplazas.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Senate race: Marsha Blackburn and Gloria Johnson do battle