A far-left Democrat's bid to take a seat in Congress from the GOP in deep red Tennessee failed on Tuesday as Republican Matt Van Epps defeated Aftyn Behn in Tuesday's special election in the state's 7th Congressional District.
With almost all of the votes counted, Van Epps had 54% compared with 45% for Behn, who many were referring to as the "AOC of Tennessee." Reported turnout in the district was high, reaching about the same level as in the 2022 midterms.
“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.”
Tuesday's special election was held to replace Republican Rep. Mark Green who resigned his seat in July to start a new business.
Going into Tuesday's special election in the Nashville-area district, Republicans had a 219-213 majority in the House, which they have been hoping to keep and expand in the midterms next year.
Trump wrote in a post to Truth Social:
Congratulations to Matt Van Epps on his BIG Congressional WIN in the Great State of Tennessee. The Radical Left Democrats threw everything at him, including Millions of Dollars. Another great night for the Republican Party!!! President DJT Such a terrific Victory for Matt Van Epps, and his wonderful family, last night. He will be a fantastic Representative for the Great State of Tennessee for many years to come!Behn, a state lawmaker, latched on to the "affordability" mantra during her campaign.
“The word ‘affordability’ is a Democrat scam,” Trump said at the White House on Tuesday. “They have a race going on right now in Tennessee, and this woman goes ‘affordability, affordability’—they’re the ones that caused the problem.”
GOP groups had said Behn was too liberal for the district and highlighted past comments in which she described herself as radical and denigrated the tourist scene in Nashville.
“Although tonight is not the final result of what we wanted, it’s the beginning of something so powerful in Tennessee and across the south,” Behn told her supporters at a rally Tuesday night. “We did not back down.”
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