Republican Matt Van Epps Wins Tennessee's 7th District Special Election With 53.9 Percent, Holding the House Seat
On December 2, 2025, Tennessee held a special election for the state's 7th Congressional District, and Republican Matt Van Epps defeated Democratic nominee Aftyn Behn with 97,034 votes, 53.9 percent, to Behn's 81,109 votes, 45.1 percent, holding the U.S. House seat for his party. Results published by the Tennessee Secretary of State showed 180,012 total votes cast, with four independent candidates sharing the remainder.
The seat had been vacant since July 20, when Representative Mark Green resigned to take a private-sector job. In the October 7 primaries, Van Epps and Behn won their parties' nominations. The 7th District spans 14 counties in Middle Tennessee, including part of Davidson County, home to the state capital, Nashville, part of Williamson County, and Montgomery County, which includes Clarksville.
Van Epps, an Army veteran and former helicopter pilot, served as commissioner of the Tennessee Department of General Services from 2024 to 2025 and was endorsed by President Donald J. Trump. Behn is a state representative from Nashville. President Trump carried the district by about 22 points in 2024 and Green won reelection that year by about 21 points, making Van Epps's margin of about 8.8 points a marked narrowing; turnout was about 38 percent, close to the district's 2022 midterm level. With Van Epps's win, the Republican majority in the U.S. House grows to 220 seats against 213 for the Democrats once he is sworn in.
Source: Tennessee Secretary of State
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于华盛顿的美国国会大厦（资料照片）。公共领域，经Wikimedia Commons；联邦固定图库同源图。 / Photo: The United States Capitol in Washington (file photo). Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons; federal fixed image library image.
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- 2025-12-02Republican Matt Van Epps Wins Tennessee's 7th District Special Election With 53.9 Percent, Holding the House SeatThis story
