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Republican candidate and U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn listens to former Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey tell a story while eating an early supper with campaign staff and reporters at Blountville's Jailhouse BBQ on Aug. 5, 2026.

Tennessee’s gubernatorial frontrunner and Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn is suing the U.S. Department of Justice and former special counsel Jack Smith over a subpoena of her phone records during a probe into President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Blackburn filed the lawsuit Sept. 30 in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. She alleges Smith committed a “gross abuse of power” by subpoenaing her phone logs and obtaining a court order that prevented cell-service provider Verizon from notifying her. The suit claims these actions violated her constitutional and civil rights as a member of Congress. The subpoena did not request the content of calls or text messages.