"On Tuesday, December 2, voters in Tennessee's 7th district will go to the polls to fill one of the U.S. Congress's four vacant seats, choosing either current Democratic state representative Aftyn Behn or the Republican nominee, combat veteran Matt Van Epps. Under normal circumstances, this wouldn't even be a contest. The 7th is Senator Marsha Blackburn's old district, where Trump won by 22 points in 2024."
"Due to gerrymandering, only one of Tennessee's nine congressional seats is held by a Democrat, in the southwestern corner around Memphis. Despite an influx of hipsters from Brooklyn and Atlanta over the last 10 years, the map of the Nashville metro area has been divided up into five reliably Republican jigsaw puzzle pieces. The 7th District covers most parts of the city itself-everything except East Nashville, where your favorite band just moved-but also stretches to the Kentucky and Alabama borders."
"But these are not normal times. With President Trump's popularity tanking and Democrats proving they can win just about anywhere in special elections, the race has grown surprisingly tight. A new poll by Emerson/The Hill sees Behn up by just two points, 48 to 46 among likely voters, within the margin of error. Among those who report having already voted, Behn is up 14 points."
On December 2, voters in Tennessee's 7th District will choose between Democratic state representative Aftyn Behn and Republican combat veteran Matt Van Epps to fill a vacant U.S. House seat. The district strongly favored Republicans in recent elections, with Trump winning by 22 points in 2024 and prior representation by Marsha Blackburn and Mark Green. A new Emerson/The Hill poll shows Behn leading 48 to 46 among likely voters and leading by 14 points among those who already voted. Over 50,000 voters have cast early ballots. District boundaries and turnout are expected to determine the result.
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