Democrats choose a candidate for a special congressional election in Tennessee
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On Tuesday, Democrats chose their candidate in a special congressional election to fill a vacant seat in Tennessee.
Aftin Behn, a former health care community organizer and current Democratic state representative, received her party’s nomination, according to the Associated Press. The Dickson County Democratic Party called Behn “our AOC in Tennessee,” referring to U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., according to the Tennessee Star.
The primary field included three state representatives and a consultant in Tennessee’s solidly red 7th Congressional District.
Behn will now be considered the underdog in the Dec. 2 general election in the race to succeed former Republican Rep. Mark Green, who resigned in June to take a job in the private sector.
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A special election is being held in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District to fill the seat left vacant after Republican Rep. Mark Green resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives in June to take a job in the private sector. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
President Donald Trump carried the district, which is located in central and western Tennessee and extends from Kentucky to Alabama, by about 20 points in last year’s presidential election.
Trump is ahead in these 2025 election showdowns
Trump’s enormous political influence in Republican nomination races faced a test Tuesday in the crowded and competitive GOP primaries. This came after the president last week endorsed Matt Van Epp, former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of General Services and one of 11 names on the ballot in the Republican primary. Van Epp announced victory on Tuesday.
President Donald Trump gestures as he boards Air Force One with First Lady Melania Trump at Naval Station Norfolk Chambers Field in Norfolk, Virginia, Sunday, October 5, 2025. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)
Republicans currently control the House by a vote of 219 to 213, with two seats vacant: the seat in Tennessee and the 18th Congressional District in Texas, following the death of Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner earlier this year.
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Democratic Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, who won a special congressional election in Arizona last month, has not yet been sworn in.