Can Defense Department employees run for political office? No, because the Defense Department prohibits civilian employees from running for political office under the Hatch Act, a

The defense secretary has talked privately about running a campaign in Tennessee, sources told NBC News. The Pentagon said Hegseth’s “focus remains solely on serving under” Trump.

On July 29, NBC reported that Hegseth has "privately discussed the idea of running for political office." While the Pentagon’s chief spokesman Sean Parnell denied any idea of Hegseth vying for the governorship in Tennessee, the Secretary of Defense could run for office should he choose to leave his current post.