Tre Hargett was elected by the Tennessee General Assembly to serve as Tennessee’s 37th secretary of state in 2009 and re-elected in 2013, 2017 and 2021. Secretary Hargett is the chief executive officer of the Department of State with oversight of more than 300 employees. He also serves on numerous boards and commissions, on two of which he is the presiding member. The services and oversight found in the Secretary of State's office reach every department and agency in state government.
Accuracy, cost-effectiveness and accountability drive every decision within the department. Secretary Hargett places a premium on customer service while leveraging technology to create efficiencies that benefit taxpayers with a customer-centered approach to state government.
Under Secretary Hargett’s leadership, the department has implemented a massive overhaul of its technological abilities to embrace customers online. The department offers Tennesseans online voter registration and the GoVoteTN mobile app to help increase voter registration, turnout and awareness.
A redesigned website, found at sos.tn.gov, offers a wealth of information and services, including an intuitive online corporate filing system, a place where consumers can learn how their charitable contributions are being spent and resources to promote civic engagement across Tennessee.
He also continues to promote the vast resources of the Tennessee State Library & Archives. Thanks to his work with the Tennessee General Assembly, the Library & Archives recently moved to a new facility on the Bicentennial Mall where it can better serve all Tennesseans while preserving the state’s history.
Secretary Hargett was named a Council of State Governments Henry Toll Fellow in 2010, an honor given annually to forty-eight of the nation’s top state government officials. Additionally, he is on the board of directors of the YMCA Center for Civic Engagement, a member of the Union University Advisory Board, as well as chairman of the executive committee of the Republican Secretaries of State Committee (RSSC). Secretary Hargett is also a graduate of the Aspen Institute - Rodel Fellowship Class of 2010. He has also been recognized for his support of National History Day.
Previously, he served as chairman of the Tennessee Regulatory Authority. Before joining the Tennessee Regulatory Authority he was regional vice president for a publicly traded emergency services provider.
Secretary Hargett served in the Tennessee House of Representatives for a decade representing District 97 (Bartlett and Memphis) and was twice elected Republican Leader by his colleagues.
Mr. Hargett earned a B.B.A. in Accounting with honors from Memphis State University as well as an M.B.A. from the University of Memphis.
A native of Ripley, Secretary Hargett now lives in Hendersonville with his wife, Dawn, and their two sons. He is a Southern Baptist and attends Indian Lake Peninsula Church.
Secretary Hargett is the son of Pat Vaughan of Wingo, Kentucky, and retired Maj. Gen. Gus Hargett, Jr. of Murfreesboro.
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