2025 Tennessee's 7th congressional district special election

The 2025 Tennessee's 7th congressional district special election will be held on December 2, 2025, to fill the vacant seat in Tennessee's 7th congressional district.^[1] The winner will serve in the United States House of Representatives for the remainder of the 119th United States Congress. The seat became vacant on July 20, 2025, following the resignation of Republican Mark Green who took a private sector job.^[2] Green resigned after the House voted again to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.^[3][4]

2025 Tennessee's 7th congressional district special election

← 2024 December 2, 2025 2026 →
Tennessee's 7th congressional district
Nominee Matt Van Epps Aftyn Behn Party Republican Democratic
U.S. Representative before election Mark Green Republican Elected U.S. Representative TBD

Primary elections took place on October 7, where Republican Matt Van Epps and Democrat Aftyn Behn won their respective primaries.^[5]

Background

The 7th congressional district includes parts of Nashville that are heavily Democratic, such as downtown, two universities, Belmont and Vanderbilt, and most of the city’s majority-black precincts. Surrounding counties, including Cheatham, Dickson, Robertson, and Williamson, are generally affluent and include mainly majority-white exurbs and suburbs. Franklin, in particular, is a wealthy Republican suburban stronghold. Montgomery County, anchored by Clarksville, Tennessee’s fifth-largest city, is politically mixed and slightly more competitive than the district overall. Clarksville is diverse, with White, Black, and Hispanic populations spread throughout the city, and the county often serves as a bellwether for the district. The district’s rural areas are solidly Republican, consisting of eight counties that are predominantly White, and this portion helps maintain the district’s Republican lean.^[6]

In the 2024 presidential election, the district voted for Donald Trump by more than 22%.^[7] It also supported Mark Green in 2024 by over 21%.^[8] As of 2025, the district has a Cook PVI of R+10.^[9]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Matt Van Epps, former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of General Services (2024–2025)^[10]

Eliminated in primary

• Jody Barrett, state representative from the 69th district (2023–present)^[11]
• Gino Bulso, state representative from the 61st district (2023–present)^[12]
• Stuart Cooper, businessman^[13]
• Adolph Dagan, teacher^[13]
• Mason Foley, former legislative correspondent for U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell^[13][14]
• Jason Knight, Montgomery County commissioner and candidate for Tennessee's 22nd Senate district in 2019^[15]
• Joe Leurs, retired police officer^[13]
• Stewart Parks, realtor, participant in the January 6 Capitol attack, and candidate for the 5th district in 2022^[16]
• Tres Wittum, legislative policy analyst, candidate for Tennessee's 5th congressional district in 2022 and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2024^[13]

Withdrawn

• Jay Reedy, state representative from the 74th district (2015–present) (endorsed Bulso)^[16][17]
• Jon Thorp, commercial helicopter pilot (running as an independent)^[13]
• Lee Reeves, state representative from the 65th district (2025–present) (endorsed Van Epps; remained on ballot)^[18]

Declined

• Aron Maberry, state representative from the 68th district (2025–present)^[19] (endorsed Reeves)^[20]
• Brandon Ogles, former state representative from the 61st district (2019–2023), candidate for this district in 2024, and cousin of U.S. Representative Andy Ogles^[21]
• Bill Powers, state senator from the 22nd district (2019–present)^[22]

Endorsements

Jody Barrett

Executive branch officials

• Michael Flynn, former U.S. National Security Advisor (2017)^[23]

Local officials

• Tim Eads, Dickson County sheriff^[23]
• Tito Ortiz, former Huntington Beach, California city councilmember (2020–2021)^[23]

Individuals

• Camie Guenther-Green, ex-wife of former U.S. representative Mark Green^[23]
• John Rich, musician^[23]

Organizations

• House Freedom Fund^[24]

Gino Bulso

State legislators

• Jay Reedy, state representative from the 74th district (2015–present)^[17]

Individuals

• Darrell Waltrip, former NASCAR driver^[23]

Matt Van Epps

Executive branch officials

• Donald Trump, 45th and 47th president of the United States (2017–2021, 2025–present)^[18]

U.S. representative

• Mark Green, former U.S. representative from Tennessee's 7th congressional district (2019–2025)^[25]
• Mike Haridopolos, U.S. representative from Florida's 8th congressional district (2025–present)^[23]
• Jim Jordan, U.S. representative from Ohio's 4th congressional district (2007–present)^[26]
• David McIntosh, former U.S. representative from Indiana's 2nd congressional district (1995–2001)^[27]

Statewide officials

• Bill Haslam, former Governor of Tennessee (2011–2019)^[23]
• Bill Lee, Governor of Tennessee (2019–present)^[28]

State legislators

• Lee Reeves, state representative from the 65th district (2025–present)^[18]

Local officials

• Michael Lankford, Montgomery County commissioner^[29]

Organizations

• Club for Growth^[27]
• With Honor Fund^[30]

Lee Reeves (withdrawn)

State legislators

• Jeremy Faison, state representative from the 11th district (2011–present)^[31]
• Jack Johnson, majority leader of the Tennessee Senate (2019–present) from the 27th district (2007–present)^[32]
• Aron Maberry, state representative from the 68th district (2025–present)^[20]
• Jake McCalmon, state representative from the 63th district (2023–present)^[31]

Local officials

• Glenn Jacobs, Knox County mayor (2018–present)^[32]
• 7 other mayors^[33]

Party officials

• Lonnie Spivak, former chair of the Nashville Republican Party^[23]

Organizations

• GOPAC^[34]

Fundraising

Italics indicate a withdrawn candidate.

Campaign finance reports as of September 17, 2025
Candidate	Raised	Spent	Cash on hand
Gino Bulso (R)	$550,005[a]	$474,449	$75,556
Jody Barrett (R)	$241,872	$171,718	$70,154
Stuart Cooper (R)	$34,313[b]	$27,409	$6,904
Mason Foley (R)	$396,278[c]	$272,361	$123,917
Jason Knight (R)	$41,170[d]	$36,067	$5,103
Joe Leurs (R)	$6,604	$17,747	$0
Stewart Parks (R)	$334,307[e]	$330,034	$4,273
Matthew Van Epps (R)	$359,256	$249,877	$109,379
Lee Reeves (R)	$569,015[f]	$487,487	$81,528
Source: Federal Election Commission[35]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[g]	Margin of error	Jody Barrett	Gino Bulso	Lee Reeves	Matt Van Epps	Other	Undecided
Spry Strategies[36][A]	August 19–23, 2025	500 (LV)	± 4.4%	10%	9%	8%	7%	8%[h]	58%

Results

Results by county

  Van Epps

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%

  Barrett

•   50–60%

Matt Van Epps won twelve of the fourteen counties, while Jody Barrett won the two counties he represents in the Tennessee State House, Dickson and Hickman.

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Van Epps	19,001	51.56%
	Republican	Jody Barrett	9,335	25.33%
	Republican	Gino Bulso	4,004	10.86%
	Republican	Lee Reeves (withdrawn)	1,929	5.23%
	Republican	Mason Foley	1,022	2.77%
	Republican	Stewart Parks	595	1.61%
	Republican	Jason Knight	381	1.03%
	Republican	Stuart Cooper	239	0.65%
	Republican	Tres Wittum	133	0.36%
	Republican	Joe Leurs	122	0.33%
	Republican	Adolph Dagan	93	0.25%
Total votes			36,854	100.00%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Aftyn Behn, state representative from the 51st district (2023–present)^[11]

Eliminated in primary

• Darden Copeland, consultant^[37]
• Vincent Dixie, state representative from the 54th district (2019–present)^[16]
• Bo Mitchell, state representative from the 50th district (2013–present)^[38]

Declined

• Charlane Oliver, state senator from the 19th district (2023–present)^[37]
• Megan Barry, former mayor of Nashville (2015–2018) and nominee for this district in 2024^[39]

Endorsements

Aftyn Behn

Organizations

• Indivisible Tennessee^[40]
• Moms Demand Action^[23]
• Progressive Democrats of America^[41]
• Tennessee College Democrats^[23]

Vincent Dixie

State legislators

• Gloria Johnson, state representative from the 90th district (2013–2015, 2019–present)^[23]

Organizations

• The Collective PAC^[23]

Bo Mitchell

U.S. representatives

• Bob Clement, U.S. representative from Tennessee's 5th congressional district (1988–2003)^[23]
• John Tanner, U.S. representative from Tennessee's 8th congressional district (1989–2011)^[23]

State legislators

• Heidi Campbell, state senator from the 20th district (2021–present)^[23]

Local officials

• Jason Spain, Nashville metro councilmember from the 30th district^[23]
• Sheri Weiner, Nashville metro councilmember from the 22nd district^[23]

Labor unions

• International Association of Fire Fighters Local 140^[23]

Fundraising

Campaign finance reports as of September 17, 2025
Candidate	Raised	Spent	Cash on hand
Aftyn Behn (D)	$149,028	$104,365	$44,664
Darden Copeland (D)	$434,936[i]	$43,214	$391,723
Vincent Dixie (D)	$138,230	$93,010	$45,220
Bo Mitchell (D)	$202,840	$108,807	$94,034
Source: Federal Election Commission[35]

Results

Results by county

  Behn

•   30–40%

  Copeland

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%

  Mitchell

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%

  Dixie

•   30–40%

Aftyn Behn narrowly won, carrying only one county, Williamson County, by a slim margin. However, she performed well in the more populous Montgomery and Davidson counties, which helped secure her victory. Darden Copeland and Bo Mitchell each carried six counties, while Vincent Dixie won Davidson.

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Aftyn Behn	8,648	27.89%
	Democratic	Darden Copeland	7,716	24.89%
	Democratic	Bo Mitchell	7,492	24.17%
	Democratic	Vincent Dixie	7,146	23.05%
Total votes			31,002	100.00%

Independents

Candidates

Declared

• Terri Christie, boat captain^[42]
• Bobby Dodge^[13]
• Robert James Sutherby^[13]
• Jon Thorp, commercial helicopter pilot (previously ran as a Republican)^[43]

Fundraising

Campaign finance reports as of June 30, 2025
Candidate	Raised	Spent	Cash on hand
Jon Thorp (I)	$1,387	$1,087	$300
Source: Federal Election Commission[35]

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Sabato's Crystal Ball[44]	Likely R	July 10, 2025

Results

2025 Tennessee's 7th congressional district special election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Matt Van Epps
	Democratic	Aftyn Behn
	Independent	Terri Christie			N/A
	Independent	Bobby Dodge			N/A
	Independent	Robert James Sutherby			N/A
	Independent	Jon Thorp			N/A
Total votes					N/A

By county

County	Matt Van Epps Republican		Aftyn Behn Democratic		Others Independent		Total votes
	%	#	%	#	%	#
Benton (part)
Cheatham
Davidson (part)
Decatur
Dickson
Hickman
Houston
Humphreys
Montgomery
Perry
Robertson
Stewart
Wayne
Williamson (part)

See also

• 2025 United States elections
• 2025 United States House of Representatives elections
• List of special elections to the United States House of Representatives
• List of United States representatives from Tennessee
• 119th United States Congress

Notes

1. $493,972 of this total was self-funded by Bulso
2. $1,656 of this total was self-funded by Cooper
3. $325,000 of this total was self-funded by Foley
4. $20,000 of this total was self-funded by Knight
5. $67,167 of this total was self-funded by Parks
6. $300,000 of this total was self-funded by Reeves
7. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
8. Knight with 3%; Wittum with 2%; Cooper, Dagan, and Parks with 1%; Foley and Leurs with 0%
9. $100,000 of this total was self-funded by Copeland

Partisan clients

1. This poll was sponsored by Americans for Prosperity Tennessee