Behn, Van Epps Face Off in TN Special Election

Aftyn Behn and Matt Van Epps will face off in a Dec. 2 special election to fill the remainder of Republican Mark Green’s seat after his July resignation. Behn, a Nashville state representative and former community organizer, won a four-way Democratic primary by roughly 900 votes on a progressive platform emphasizing rural health care, grocery-tax reform and reproductive access. Van Epps, a combat veteran and the GOP nominee, won a crowded Republican primary after a last-minute endorsement from former President Donald Trump. The contest is being closely watched nationally because a Democratic win would narrow the GOP’s 219-213 House majority and serve as a barometer of support for Trump-era politics ahead of 2026. Though Republicans have held the district since 1983, 2021–22 redistricting added part of northern Nashville and made the seat more competitive; Democrats hope energized turnout could flip it, but Republicans remain favored given recent voting trends.