NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Democrats and Republicans have no shortage of candidates in Tuesday’s Tennessee primary to replace a Republican congressman who resigned this summer, including one who won the endorsement of President Donald Trump last week.
The race to succeed former U.S. Rep. Mark Green centers on one of three districts that GOP lawmakers have designated as safely red in 2022 by splitting left-leaning Nashville. The Dec. 2 general election could be a measure of the popularity of Trump’s aggressive second-term agenda, particularly among suburban Republican voters.
The 7th Congressional District spans 14 counties and borders Kentucky and Alabama. His voters chose the Greens in 2024 by 21 percentage points and in 2022 by almost 22 percentage points. In addition to parts of Nashville, it includes rural areas, affluent suburbs and part of the Fort Campbell military installation.
GOP considers delayed Trump endorsement
With 11 Republicans on the ballot, Matt Van Epps caused a stir when Trump endorsed him on Friday, a day after in-person early voting ended. The endorsement prompted another high-profile candidate, Rep. Lee Reeves, to announce he would suspend his campaign and support Van Epps, a former general services commissioner in Republican Gov. Bill Lee’s administration. The governor and Green had already endorsed Van Epps. Trump praised Van Epps for his military service.
It was too delayed to remove Reeves’ name from the ballot.
The field includes two other Republican state representatives, Gino Bulso and Jody Barrett. Bulso is a Brentwood attorney who is an outspoken advocate for social conservative policies, including those aimed at the rights of LGBTQ+ people. Bulso has poured nearly $700,000 of his own fortune into the race.
Outside groups have spent more than $3.1 million, almost entirely on the Republican side, with more than $1.1 million opposing Barrett.
School choice advocates who have denounced Barrett’s vote against Gov. Lee’s statewide expansion of school vouchers are behind many of the attack ads against Barrett. Barrett, a Dickson attorney, said he pushed back against the “elites” in his own party and praised a school choice tax credit initiative touted by Trump. He has the support of the House Freedom Fund.
These three have garnered the most attention, but they aren’t the only well-funded GOP candidates. Mason Foley, a health care businessman and former staffer for Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, loaned his campaign $325,000. And Stewart Parks, who was pardoned by Trump after entering the Capitol during the insurrection on January 6, 2021, contributed around $300,000 to his campaign through donations and loans.
Also vying for the GOP nomination: Montgomery County Commissioner Jason Knight; Adolph Agbéko Dagan, a Clarksville businessman; former state legislative aide Tres Wittum; and Joe Leurs, a retired undercover detective with the Nashville Police Department. Stuart Cooper, a Franklin businessman, also suspended his campaign and endorsed Van Epps after Trump endorsed him.
Democrats attack Trump’s policies
The four Democratic candidates in the race, meanwhile, have attacked the law, which Trump has called a “big, beautiful bill,” in addition to his tariffs.
Rep. Aftyn Behn is a social worker and community organizer who focuses on women’s reproductive health rights, including as a plaintiff in a lawsuit challenging a Tennessee law that prohibits adults from helping minors have an abortion without parental permission. A judge stopped enforcement of the provision.
Rep. Vincent Dixie, a businessman in the surety industry, has touted his record as the first black leader of a legislative caucus in state history. In a campaign video from a garbage truck, he said, “Washington has piled up trash for working families.”
Rep. Bo Mitchell, who works on employee benefits, has focused on access to health care and his roots in Dickson County, a rural part of the county.
Darden Copeland founded the public affairs firm called Calvert Street Group and served as a consultant to Democratic campaigns. He has made it his mission to serve in the private sector among a group of elected officials.
