After a special-election sprint triggered by incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Green's resignation in July, Green's pick — Army vet Matt Van Epps — ultimately kept the 7th Congressional District in Republicans' hands.
Conservatives fend off Aftyn Behn’s sudden influx of national support
Van Epps defeated his challenger, Democratic Nashville state Rep. Aftyn Behn, by 9 percentage points on Tuesday. This is a significant improvement for Tennessee Dems, whose candidates lost to Green by a margin of 22 points in both 2022 and 2024. The district was redrawn by Tennessee's Republican supermajority in 2022 to include a jagged chunk of Davidson County, alongside roughly a dozen rural counties. Since then, the state’s most populous city has been represented by Republicans.
“I’m really proud of the race we've run, considering that this was the only special election," Behn told reporters after her concession speech Tuesday night at Marathon Music Works in Nashville. "The entire country, the entire Republican apparatus was breathing down our neck, and to be competitive says a lot.”
Behn, who was joined at her election night party by fellow state lawmakers including Sen. Charlane Oliver, called the race “an incredible moment of collaboration” within the Tennessee Democratic Party. "The pendulum is going to swing," Behn said. "It's just a matter of how long and who's involved, and I hope that's going to be us.”
Matt Van Epps’ watch party at Millennium Maxwell House in Nashville, Dec. 2, 2025
Meanwhile, at Van Epps' election night party at the Millennium Maxwell House Nashville, the newly elected Republican leaned on his endorsement from President Trump.
“Tonight we showed running from Trump is how you lose,” said Van Epps. “Running with Trump is how you win.”
See photos from both candidates' election night parties above.
