NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Republican Matt Van Epps won a nationally watched special election in Tennessee for a U.S. House seat Tuesday, maintaining his party’s grip on the conservative district with help from President Donald Trump. But the comparatively slim margin of victory fueled Democratic hopes for next year’s midterms as the party grasps for a path back to power in Washington.
A military veteran and former state general services commissioner from Nashville, Van Epps defeated Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn to represent the 7th Congressional District.
With 99% of votes counted, Van Epps’ lead was around 9 percentage points. The previous Republican who held the seat won by 21 points last year, and Trump carried the district by 22 points.
Behn, who ran as an unapologetic progressive, ran up a huge margin in Davidson County, which is the most Democratic county in the district and home to Nashville. But Van Epps carried the rest of the district, including many deep-red counties throughout central Tennessee, as he tied himself tightly to Trump.
“Politicians who run from the president or abandon the common-sense policies that the American people gave us a resounding mandate on do so at their own peril,” Van Epps said at his victory party. “No matter what the D.C. insiders or liberal media say, this is President Trump’s party. I’m proud to be a part of it and can’t wait to get to work.”
Trump congratulated Van Epps in a social media post, saying he won even though “the Radical Left Democrats threw everything at him.”
Democrats say Republicans are ‘on the ropes’
Democratic Congressional Candidate Aftyn Behn took the stage at her campaign gathering after losing the Tennessee special election to Republican candidate Van Epps. (AP video by Kristin Hall)
At her own campaign gathering, Behn took the stage with a burst of energy, singing Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5” in a western-style rhinestoned suit. Despite falling short, Behn said the result was “the beginning of something” powerful.
She noted that Republicans redrew the district three years ago to make it harder for Democrats to win, and “nobody in Washington believed we could get even this close.”
“Tonight isn’t the end. It is the beginning of a next chapter of Tennessee and American politics — one of possibility, one of power and one of progress for the people that we love,” Behn said.
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said Republicans should be “shaking in their boots” ahead of the midterms, which will determine control of Congress.
“What happened tonight in Tennessee makes it clear: Democrats are on offense and Republicans are on the ropes,” Martin said in a statement.
The special election drew big money
Van Epps benefited from nearly $1.7 million in spending from MAGA Inc., according to a memo from the Trump-aligned group, with nearly half going toward digital advertising targeting people streaming video online. It was the first time the organization spent money on a campaign since last year’s presidential race, a reflection of the special election’s outsize importance.
House Speaker Mike Johnson and national Republican chair Joe Gruters rallied supporters in Tennessee on Monday. Trump addressed a crowd at a rally in the state by phone and later in the day held a tele-rally for Van Epps, his second of the general election.
Chip Saltsman, a political strategist and former Tennessee state party chair, said Republicans were slow to organize after a competitive primary.
“In Tennessee, it’s been a long time since we thought about beating Democrats,” Saltsman said. “It’s been a lot more important to beat Republicans in a primary.”
“This time,” he added, “we had to pay attention.”
Republican leaders had hoped for a convincing victory to scuttle Democratic claims that even red districts are now in play as Trump struggles with low approval ratings and persistent economic dissatisfaction. In addition, Democrats recently won by wide margins in New Jersey, Virginia and elsewhere.
Behn had national support of her own, and the House Majority PAC put $1 million behind her. Party chair Ken Martin visited to campaign for Behn, and former Vice President Kamala Harris participated in a canvassing kickoff while in Nashville on a book tour. Former Vice President Al Gore and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez headlined a virtual rally for her Monday night.
Van Epps stuck with Trump
Republican state lawmakers redrew the 7th District and two others in 2022 to help prevent liberal-voting Nashville from electing another Democrat to Congress. Only about 1 in 5 voters in the district, which spans 14 counties, are in the city.
The seat was vacated when Republican former Rep. Mark Green, retired this summer. The single-race election came at an odd time to be casting ballots, with early voting ending the day before Thanksgiving and Election Day the following Tuesday.
Van Epps aligned with the president as closely as possible, telling him during the November tele-rally, “I will have your back 100%.” He won a crowded primary by a wide margin in October with a late endorsement from Trump.
Behn focused her campaign on fiery criticisms of economic policies that she said prioritize wealthy people and corporations, including Trump’s tariffs and budget and spending law, both of which Van Epps supports.
But Republicans created a steady drumbeat of Behn’s own words used against her in television advertising, such as when she described herself as a “radical” and made harsh remarks about Nashville and its tourist draws.
Trump supporter Anthony Bordonaro, 37, said Tuesday that he wants the president’s policies to move forward but pointed to those anti-Nashville comments as extra motivation to vote for Van Epps.
“I just didn’t really like what I was hearing about the other candidate not liking Nashville,” he said.
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Associated Press writer Meg Kinnard, in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed.
