Victoria Broderick Flips 4th Congressional District Blue

In a shocking upset, Democratic tech support professional Victoria Broderick has narrowly defeated longtime incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais in Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District. The final margin was fewer than 300 votes.

Broderick, of Fayetteville, beat DesJarlais, who was seeking his ninth term in Congress. Broderick cites the 2022 Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade as motivation for her political activism, which includes previously serving as chair of the Lincoln County Democratic Party. She campaigned on issues like safety, affordability, freedom and equity, citing a range of topics from decriminalizing marijuana to holding AI companies and data centers accountable, reducing gun violence, keeping rural hospitals open and protecting religious liberty.

“We are ready to show that better representation in this district is possible and fight for the needs of everyday Americans and everyday Tennesseans,” says Christian Gay, Broderick's campaign manager. “We want to thank those who voted for us, and for those who did not, we represent you too. Our office is going to be available to people for those who want to talk to us and have any needs. Victoria thanks them. I think it’s a little bit of shock. Victoria always knew the work would pay for itself. She lost in 2024. She got back up and kept moving. It’s a relief and a payoff for every door this campaign knocked. I can only describe it as tremendous.” 

DesJarlais aligned himself with traditional conservative values like reducing taxes, securing the border and protecting the Second Amendment. His time in Congress included multiple personal scandals throughout his political career, including instances when DesJarlais — a physician — had sexual relationships with multiple patients and pressured at least two former sexual partners to get abortions. Despite this, DesJarlais continued to brand himself as an anti-abortion conservative. 

The 4th Congressional District contains southeastern Davidson County, the majority of Rutherford County and all of Cannon, Coffee, Warren, Van Buren, Bledsoe, Sequatchie, Grundy, Marion and Franklin counties.