By Gabe WhisnantShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberPresident Donald Trump has reacted after Tennessee Republican Matt Van Epps defeated state Rep. Aftyn Behn, the Democrat, in the reliably conservative 7th U.S. House Congressional District.
With 83 percent of the vote counted, Van Epps held a 51.5 percent to 47.5 percent lead, separated by just over 6,000 votes. CNN called the race at 9:30 p.m. ET.
The president posted on Truth Social, "Congratulations to Matt Van Epps on his BIG Congressional WIN in the Great State of Tennessee. The Radical Left Democrats threw everything at him, including Millions of Dollars. Another great night for the Republican Party!!! President DJT"
Van Epps was boosted by more than $1 million from MAGA Inc., marking the first time the Trump-aligned super PAC has spent on a campaign since last year’s presidential race — a sign of the contest’s heightened importance. House Speaker Mike Johnson and GOP Chair Joe Gruters campaigned for her in Tennessee on Monday. Trump addressed supporters by phone and later held a tele-rally for Van Epps, his second of the general election.
The House Majority PAC invested $1 million to support the progressive Behn, and national party chair Ken Martin traveled to the district to campaign for her. Former Vice President Kamala Harris helped launch a canvassing effort while in Nashville on a book tour, and former Vice President Al Gore — a Tennessee native — joined Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in headlining a virtual rally on the eve of the election.
The 7th District is one of three seats redrawn in 2022 to dilute the political influence of Nashville, the state’s largest and heavily Democratic city. Only about one-fifth of the district’s registered voters live in Nashville, and last year it backed former Rep. Mark Green, who resigned this summer, by 21 percentage points and supported Trump by a similar margin.
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
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