Rep. Tim Burchett Says His Opponent's Side Sent a Handwritten Postcard Aimed at His Wife and Daughter
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said Sunday that a handwritten postcard meant for his wife and daughter to see arrived at his house days before Tuesday's election, and he blamed people on his opponent's side for it, according to a video he posted on X.
Burchett wrote in the post, published at 1:13 p.m. Central time Sunday, "Campaigns are man to man combat. Leave my family out of it." The post included a selfie video just over two minutes long.
Video: Rep. Tim Burchett / X
What Tim Burchett Said in the Video
Burchett said in the video that his wife showed him the card. "My wife says, honey, have you seen this? And I get a postcard to the house handwritten for my wife and daughter to see that really says some unkind things about me," he said. He said the card was meant "to demoralize my family, I guess."
Burchett called it "horribly offensive and bush league." He said he did not know whether it came from "an overzealous volunteer" or was "a planned attack," adding, "I'm not sure." He said that if someone in his own campaign did that, he would "publicly call them out" and fire them "on the spot, no questions asked."
"Yet for some reason, my opponent has people that are willing to do this and using their official capacity to do it," Burchett said. He did not say who sent the card, did not show it in the video and did not explain what he meant by "official capacity." The Digital Free Press has not seen the postcard.
Burchett said he had planned to rest this weekend before Tuesday, "the big day," but that he is now "going to start pouring on the dadgum steam." He ended the video by saying, "Leave families out of it. Kelly Burchett is way out of your league," referring to his wife, and asked viewers for their vote.
The Race in Tennessee's 2nd District
Burchett represents Tennessee's 2nd Congressional District, which is based in Knoxville, and is seeking a fifth term. He did not name his opponent in the video. The Tennessee Secretary of State's candidate list for the Nov. 3 general election shows Burchett facing Democrat Michaela Barnett of Knoxville and independent candidates Bruce Fine and Adam Heimerman.
As of Sunday evening, The Digital Free Press found no public response to Burchett's claim from Barnett on her campaign website or on X. The Digital Free Press has not yet reached the Barnett campaign for comment.
Knoxville TV station WVLT reported on Oct. 29 that Burchett's campaign confirmed he is "absolutely" planning to run for the U.S. Senate in 2028. In a statement reported by the station, Barnett said Burchett is "more focused on climbing the next rung of the political ladder than on serving the constituents he has right now."
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Sources: Rep. Tim Burchett on X (Nov. 1, 2026): https://x.com/timburchett/status/2116972012929167421 ; Tennessee Secretary of State, Candidates for United States House of Representatives, Nov. 3, 2026 General Election: https://sos-prod.tnsosgovfiles.com/s3fs-public/document/USHouse_Nov2026.pdf ; Ballotpedia, Tennessee's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026: https://ballotpedia.org/Tennessee%27s_2nd_Congressional_District_election,_2026 ; WVLT via WSMV, "Tim Burchett is 'absolutely' running for U.S. Senate in 2028, campaign confirms" (Oct. 29, 2026): https://www.wsmv.com/2026/10/29/tim-burchett-is-absolutely-running-us-senate-2028-campaign-confirms/ ; WATE, "Tim Burchett vs. Michaela Barnett: Candidates' final pitch": https://www.wate.com/news/election-news/burchett-barnett-tennessee-2nd-congressional-race/ ; Michaela Barnett campaign website: https://www.michaelafortennessee.com/ ; Cover photo: official House portrait of Rep. Tim Burchett (public domain): https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/B001309
Comments