Trump makes last-minute effort to boost GOP vote ahead of Tennessee special election
FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee congressional seat that President Donald Trump and Republicans won easily became the unlikely epicenter of the congressional fight Monday, as House Speaker Mike Johnson led rallies and former Vice President Al Gore and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told Democrats they could be on the verge of a monumental victory.
Trump even called twice during the day to tell voters to back Matt Van Epps, the Republican nominee, in Tuesday’s special election.
“The whole world is looking at Tennessee right now, and it’s looking at your district,” the president said after Johnson put him on speaker during an event inside a garage full of vintage cars at a sprawling fan farm in Franklin. “It’s a great vote and it will show something. And it will show that the Republican Party is stronger than ever.”
A few hours later, Trump delivered the message at a virtual rally, his second for Van Epps since the former Army helicopter pilot and state general services commissioner became the Republican nominee.
The rush of attention to the reliably conservative Seventh Congressional District of the U.S. House of Representatives came as Trump hopes to bounce back from recent Republican defeats across the country. Democrats want a strong result that can boost them in next year’s midterm elections that will determine control of Congress.
Tennessee state Rep. Aftyn Behn (D), a self-proclaimed “pissed off social worker” and progressive community organizer from Nashville, raced through her latest campaign stops, including the virtual rally with Gore, a Tennessee native, and Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
Gore said people are struggling with high costs of food and health care while Trump runs “by far the most corrupt administration in history,” pushed in Congress by “too many servile cowards.”
“Having had the privilege of representing Tennessee in years past, I want to tell you that I have never seen the political tides shift as far and as quickly as we are seeing in this election,” Gore said.
Ocasio-Cortez said the competitive race shows that “anything can happen and miracles can happen, even in Tennessee” with hard work.
via News
Some state Democrats have described Behn as “our own TN AOC,” a nickname Republicans have seized on to mock Behn as too left-wing for the district.
“They’re bringing in all their heavy hitters because they think they can turn this seat from red to blue,” Johnson told reporters. “That’s not going to happen.” Johnson is trying to maintain a narrow majority in the House and said the race is for “all the marbles.”
Republicans have expressed concerns about turnout because early voting took place Thanksgiving week and Election Day follows the holiday weekend. Van Epps received endorsements from a phalanx of party leaders on Monday, including National Chairman Joe Gruters, Gov. Bill Lee and Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty.
“I think Matt is going to be fine,” Hagerty said. “But it’s not just about winning. It’s about winning by a margin large enough to send a real message from Tennessee that we’re not going to allow this.”
Former Vice President Kamala Harris appeared in Nashville to rally voters last month during a book tour, and the party’s national chairman, Ken Martin, also visited the country.
The Seventh District is one of three seats redrawn in 2022 to erode the influence of Nashville, the state’s largest city and a Democratic stronghold. Only about 1 in 5 of the 14-county district’s registered voters are in Nashville. Last year, the district went to former Republican Rep. Mark Green by 21 percentage points and to Trump by a similar margin.
Behn has condemned Trump’s tax cut and tariff legislation, which Van Epps supports.
Republicans have tried to turn Behn’s own words against her in television advertising, such as when she described herself as “radical” or claimed she was “intimidating” immigration agents and state police. A frequent target is comments Behn made about Nashville years ago, when she said “I hate this city” and complained about annoyances like bachelorette parties.
For the most part, Behn has answered questions about those comments by redirecting them to cost-of-living issues. But he has responded specifically about Nashville, saying he wants “it to be a place where workers can thrive,” even if he resents some tourist attractions.
“The avalanche of negative attacks is a result of the fact that they have no plan to address the rising cost of health care,” Behn said at a campaign event Monday.
Behn voter Jalen Smalls said his main concern is meeting people’s basic needs, such as funding schools, feeding children, supporting hospitals and maintaining roads.
“That’s the minimum people need to thrive, not just survive,” Smalls said.
John Rowenczak, for his part, said he will vote for Van Epps because he worries the country is becoming too liberal. He said his main concern is illegal immigration.
“I feel like Trump is doing a good job, and that’s the way we need to go,” he said. “We want to continue Trump’s agenda in this district.”
The House Majority PAC has contributed $1 million to Behn. Van Epps has been backed by more than $1 million from super PAC MAGA Inc., which supports Trump.
Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries predicted an unexpectedly close race.
“The Republicans already lost,” Jeffries said Monday. “The fact that they are spending millions of dollars to hold on to a seat that Donald Trump just won by 22 points is extraordinary.”
___
Mattise reported from Nashville, Tennessee. News writer Leah Askarinam contributed from Washington.