In Tennessee, Democrats hope a ‘coalition of the pissed off’ will flip a red district

Republicans have controlled Tennessee’s seventh congressional district for four decades. The party finished some 21 points ahead of the Democrats when the seat was last contested, alongside Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election last November.

Twelve months on, that lead has narrowed dramatically, according to opinion polls – and a challenger is attempting to build a “coalition of the pissed off” to overturn it altogether.

With a special election scheduled for next month, Democrats have nominated Aftyn Behn, a progressive state representative in the district, as their candidate. As Trump’s approval rating continues to fall amid cost-of-living concerns, she is attempting to stage the biggest challenge in a generation to Republicans in the district, and flip the seat for the first time since 1983.

“If you are dissatisfied, if you are not OK with what’s going on, then I’m your candidate,” Behn said. “If you think things are fine, I am not your candidate. If you are upset with the cost and chaos, I am your candidate.

“We have been working to build a coalition of the disenchanted, a coalition of the pissed off, and I think it’s working to our favor.”

After the resignation of Republican representative Mark Green earlier this year, the party tapped Matt Van Epps, an army veteran supported by several billionaires and publicly backed by Trump. Two separate polls put Van Epps just eight points ahead of his Democratic rival.

Van Epps did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the race, which amounts to a key test for the Democratic party and its ability to tap into voters’ indignation toward Trump amid persistent inflation and affordability concerns.

Voters in Tennessee’s seventh congressional district seat, which comprises parts of Nashville, middle and west Tennessee, will head to the polls on 2 December. Early voting has begun.

Ken Martin, the Democratic National Committee chair, has campaigned with Behn, and the DNC has been providing volunteers and phone bank support. Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance at an event for Behn this week, her first event as a campaign surrogate since leaving office. Trump, meanwhile, hosted a tele-rally with Van Epps last week, and the Republican National Committee has devoted similar resources and funding to his campaign.

‘Epicenter of the crisis’

“Tennessee is a state that has bought and sold to the highest bidder, and politicians are doing that bidding,” said Behn. “My campaign doesn’t accept corporate Pac [political action committee] money. We are not bankrolled by special interests. Unfortunately, that is the legacy right now, which I’m trying to break.”

Under Trump, the federal government “has not delivered on their promise of affordability”, said Behn. “And Tennessee is at the epicenter of the affordability crisis.

“We have some of the most expensive housing and rent. It is one of the worst place for workers in the country. We’re hitting all these metrics that are making it nearly impossible to survive in the state, which is why I’m running.”

Tennessee is 10th in the US states in Consumer Affairs’ grocery cost burden rankings, which measure the share of income consumers in each state are required to spend on groceries. Housing has meanwhile become increasingly expensive across the state, according to the non-partisan policy research center Sycamore Institute, which attributed this to growing population, the Covid-19 pandemic, and a lag in home construction.

Behn recently led a campaign against a push by Elon Musk’s Boring Company to build a high-speed underground tunnel for Tesla vehicles from downtown Nashville to the city’s airport. Despite vast local opposition, state Republicans circumvented local officials to unanimously provide the firm with access to state-owned land at no cost. Construction began last month.

“Unfortunately, our government right now works clandestinely for the puppet masters rather than the people,” added Behn. “It’s a fight that I was willing to take, and I think it can be extrapolated to the broader resentment towards the billionaire boys’ club, and these multinational greedy corporations, selling us out and rigging the system in favor of themselves.”

In Tennessee, Medicaid cuts under Trump and the expiration of Affordable Care Act subsidies are estimated to increase the uninsured population in the state by 210,000 people by 2034, according to analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

At the same time, Trump’s tariffs are hitting the state hard, with a report by Pew Research finding last month that Tennessee is one of the states most vulnerable to tariffs, as global products contributed 21.9% of its gross domestic product in 2024.

Van Epps has refused to participate in a debate with Behn ahead of the election. Her campaign has sought to create entry points for voters curious, or willing, to cross party lines. Ben has appeared on conservative talk radio shows and run a field campaign designed to knock on doors throughout the district, prioritizing voter contact in a state where turnout consistently ranks among the lowest in the US.

“We’re running one of the most competitive races the state has ever seen, and I think people really appreciate that,” claimed Behn. “As a state legislator, I have organized the most town halls of any one of my colleagues. I have open communication. I’m highly accessible and that is how I’ll be as this district’s next congresswoman.

“Whereas you have my opponent who is hiding from the press, hiding from the people, and only speaking to select closed-door cadres of people,” she continued. “I think it speaks to the moment – how you have a fighter for government, transparency, accountability, who believes in everyone participating in our democracy, versus a closed-door, special-interest candidate, who only is beholden to a special group of people, of which most folks don’t have access to.”