Image: from Yael Levin X@Yael4Hanover
By José Carlos Palma with Agencies
In a surprising finish in one of Tennessee’s most reliably Republican districts, GOP candidate Matt Van Epps secured victory Tuesday night in a special election for the state’s open U.S. House seat, defeating Democrat Aftyn Behn by a smaller-than-expected margin.
The Associated Press called the race at 9:37 p.m. Eastern Time, less than two hours after polls closed. With nearly all ballots counted, Van Epps held 53.9 percent of the vote, while Behn captured 45 percent. The nine-point spread represents a significant tightening compared to recent results. Republicans won the district by more than twenty points in 2024, and Donald Trump carried it by twenty-two points in the presidential election.
The seat was previously held by Republican Mark Green, who resigned in July. Van Epps, a former state official, entered the race with strong backing from the national GOP and received a crucial endorsement from former President Trump ahead of the primary. He also benefited from more than one million dollars in support from MAGA Inc., a Trump-aligned super PAC.
Behn, a Tennessee state legislator, mounted an unusually competitive campaign for a Democrat in the district. She raised over one million dollars in just a two-month period and received an equal amount from the House Majority PAC. Her message focused on rising costs and economic pressures, themes that have fueled a series of Democratic gains in recent off-year races across Virginia, New York, and New Jersey.
Both candidates emphasized affordability, although from different angles. Van Epps aligned himself closely with Trump’s economic priorities, stating that he was eager to work with the president and congressional leaders to bring down the cost of living. His campaign also seized on a past remark in which Behn described herself as a “very radical person.” Behn pushed back, saying that it was not radical to fight for more affordable healthcare and cheaper groceries, issues she described as central to her political career.
The election’s unexpectedly narrow margin signals that even strongholds can show volatility under the weight of national economic concerns and record levels of campaign spending. While Republicans ultimately held the seat, Democrats are likely to view the outcome as a sign that competitive opportunities may emerge even in districts long considered out of reach.