Barry “Butch” Wilmore, a Middle Tennessee native and recently retired NASA astronaut, is weighing a bid for Tennessee Governor as a Republican, according to the latest candidate filings on the Tennessee Secretary of State website.
Wilmore was issued gubernatorial paperwork on February 25, but has not yet completed the final step required to enter the race, which includes filing a petition with at least 25 valid voter signatures by the March 10 deadline.
Under Tennessee election rules, candidates must meet the filing deadline by noon and satisfy all petition requirements to qualify for the ballot.
If he proceeds, Wilmore would join an already competitive Republican primary field that includes U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), U.S. Rep. John Rose (R-TN-06), and State Representative Monty Fritts (R-Kingston).
In an interview with Fox 17 this week, Wilmore said he has been considering a run for some time, describing it as a continuation of his lifelong commitment to service and his “final mission.”
Wilmore, according to the outlet, said he wants to focus on “the state that has given me so much.”
Last year, Wilmore retired from NASA after a 25-year career that included flying four different spacecraft and accumulating 464 days in space. A U.S. Navy test pilot before joining NASA, he holds electrical engineering degrees from Tennessee Technological University and a master’s degree in aviation systems from the University of Tennessee.
Wilmore drew national attention for his extended stay aboard the International Space Station.
He launched in June 2024 alongside astronaut Suni Williams aboard a Boeing Starliner spacecraft. The mission, initially intended to last about a week, was prolonged after NASA determined the Starliner capsule was unsafe for return due to helium leaks and propulsion issues.
Wilmore and Williams ultimately returned to Earth in March 2025 aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule.
In April 2025, the Tennessee House of Representatives honored Wilmore on the House floor with a resolution recognizing his “pioneering career” in the Navy and at NASA. Governor Bill Lee signed the resolution.
At the time, Wilmore said, “We live in Texas, but our home is Tennessee. I’m proud to be a Tennessean. I will go to my grave as a Tennessean.”
While he was born in Murfreesboro and raised in Mt. Juliet, Wilmore’s Texas residence comes into question considering Tennessee’s constitutional requirement that a candidate for governor must have been a Tennessee citizen for seven years immediately preceding the November election.
Astronauts assigned to NASA facilities in Texas, including Johnson Space Center in Houston, often reside there for years due to mission demands.
It remains unclear whether Wilmore maintained Tennessee as his legal domicile during his decades-long NASA career.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Butch Wilmore” by NASA Johnson. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
