Posted on 12/02/25
| News Source: FOX News
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Republicans will hold onto a GOP-controlled vacant congressional seat in ruby-red Tennessee after winning a hotly contested special election that grabbed plenty of national attention.
Republican nominee Matt Van Epps on Tuesday defeated Democratic rival Aftyn Behn, according to the Associated Press, in the high-stakes race to succeed former GOP Rep. Mark Green, who resigned from office in June to take a private sector job.
"This race was bigger than just one campaign,"Van Epps said in a statement after declaring victory. "It represented a defining moment for Tennessee and for the direction of the country." With the GOP clinging to a razor-thin majority in the House, the special election was seen as a must-win for Republicans.
President Donald Trump carried the 7th Congressional District — which is located in central and western Tennessee, stretches from Kentucky to Alabama, and includes parts of Nashville — by 22 points in last year's presidential election. And Green won the district by over 20 points in his 2022 and 2024 re-elections.
But Democrats were energized following the 2025 elections, and public opinion surveys suggested a close contest between Van Epps and Behn in a showdown that was seen as a key barometer ahead of next year's midterm elections, when the GOP will be defending its majority.
With votes still being counted, Van Epps was on track for an upper single digit victory.
Asked by Fox News Digital on Tuesday morning if he needed to win the election by a certain margin, Van Epps said, "a win is a win."