Real estate mogul and Democratic fundraiser Bill Freeman today announced he will run for mayor of Nashville, ending months of speculation and dramatically reshaping the contest for Metro's top job. Freeman, who chairs Freeman Webb Co., is positioned to self-finance much of his campaign if he wishes, the Tennessean reports.

Gov. Bill Haslam will be the next leader of the Republican Governors Association, succeeding New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie as the group’s chairman, Nashville Public Radio reports. During Christie’s one-year stint as the RGA chair, he travelled around the country raising some $100 million for candidates. After the midterm elections, the number of GOP governors grew from 29 to 31, which is the highest number of Republican state leaders in decades. 

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam is the front runner to be the next leader of the Republican Governors Association, the Nashville Business Journal reports from the Associated Press. Many GOP governors with presidential ambitions, such as Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, have taken themselves out of the running. The RGA is currently led by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

State Rep. Mike Turner, D-Old Hickory, may have an interest in leading the Tennessee Democratic Party. The Nashville Scene has obtained an email from Andrew Daly, an assistant for the party's Bill Freeman-led Chair Vetting Committee, that informs committee members about a few people who have withdrawn their names from consideration and notes Turner's interest.

Former state Rep. Joe Carr, who in August won 41 percent of the vote in his primary challenge of U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, says he is mulling a bid for chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party. The Chattanooga Times Free Press first reported Carr was considering running against current Chairman Chris Devaney for the job because of what he called a “growing and unsettling division within the Republican Party.”

Mary Mancini, who lost a close state Senate primary race to newly elected Jeff Yarbro, and Gloria Johnson, the Knoxville state representative who lost her re-election bid last week, have announced their intentions to run for state Democratic Party chair, Knoxnews reports. Knoxville lawyer Terry Adams, a U.S. Senate candidate who lost his primary race, also is expected to join the race, the paper says. Today, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reported that former congressional candidate Lenda Sherell is considering a bid as well.

Republican state House Speaker Beth Harwell is open to a possible run for governor, the Tennessean reports from the Associated Press. In an interview with the Paris Post-Intelligencer, Harwell said she would “certainly be interested” in running for statewide office. Harwell became the state’s first female House speaker when she was elected by the chamber in 2011.

Tennessee is the sixth least politically engaged state, according to a new report from personal finance site WalletHub.com. WalletHub analyzed the 50 states and Washington, D.C., across six metrics to generate its rankings. Factors considered included turnout for the 2010 midterm elections, in which Tennessee ranked second to last. The Volunteer State ranked 46 in turnout in the 2012 presidential election and also ranked in the bottom third of states for the percent of citizens registered to vote in the last presidential election. The Nashville Business Journal has the story.

An analysis by the Government Accountability Office found that voter turnout dropped by at least 2.2 percentage points in Tennessee in 2012, the first election after passage of new voter ID requirements, the Nashville Scene reports. The Washington Post has parsed the report, which also analyzed turnout in Kansas and includes breakdowns of the law's effect on turnout generally — as compared with other states — as well as a demographic breakdown, which found a particular impact on African Americans and new voters. According to the Post's calculations, based on the data in the report, 88,000 more Tennesseans likely would have voted if not for the new law.

Prospective Republican presidential candidates are promoting religious liberty at home and abroad at a gathering of evangelical conservatives. The annual Values Voter Summit opened Friday in Washington with speeches from several potential presidential candidates, including Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. The program features ambitious Republicans with positions on social issues across the spectrum — from the libertarian-leaning Paul, who favors less emphasis on abortion and gay marriage, to Huckabee, a former Southern Baptist pastor whose conservative social values define his brand. Knoxnews has more from the Associated Press.