Trump-backed Matt Van Epps wins GOP primary in Tennessee special election for US House

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Matt Van Epps, a former commissioner in Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s administration, won a crowded Republican primary Tuesday in the special election to replace a GOP congressman who left office this summer.

Van Epps clinched the victory with an endorsement from President Donald Trump that came after in-person early voting ended. Eleven Republicans were on the ballot for the seat vacated by former U.S. Rep. Mark Green. Among them, two candidates, including state Rep. Lee Reeves, suspended their campaigns after Trump weighed in, and they likewise endorsed Van Epps.

The Dec. 2 general election could gauge the popularity of Trump’s aggressive second-term agenda, especially with suburban Republican voters.

The seat is one of three districts that GOP lawmakers drew as safely red in 2022 by dividing left-leaning Nashville. Its voters elected Green by 21 percentage points in 2024 and by nearly 22 points in 2022.

During the primary campaign, Van Epps leaned into his military experience, including as a Tennessee Army National Guard lieutenant colonel and as an Army Special Operations helicopter pilot. Among the competitors he defeated were state Reps. Jody Barrett and Gino Bulso.

Trump’s backing followed Van Epps’ prior endorsements from Lee, Green and U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Democratic and Republican ballots aren’t short on candidates in Tuesday’s Tennessee primary special election to replace a GOP congressman who stepped aside this summer, including one who landed President Donald Trump’s endorsement last week.

The race to replace former U.S. Rep. Mark Green centers on one of three districts that GOP lawmakers drew as safely red in 2022 by dividing left-leaning Nashville. The Dec. 2 general election could gauge the popularity of Trump’s aggressive second-term agenda, especially with suburban Republican voters.

The 7th Congressional District spans 14 counties, bordering both Kentucky and Alabama. Its voters elected Green by 21 percentage points in 2024 and by nearly 22 points in 2022. Along with parts of Nashville, it includes rural areas, wealthy suburbs and part of the Fort Campbell military installation.

GOP weighs late Trump endorsement

With 11 Republicans on the ballot, Matt Van Epps turned heads when Trump backed him Friday, the day after in-person early voting had ended. The endorsement prompted another high-profile candidate, state Rep. Lee Reeves, to announce he was suspending his campaign and backing Van Epps, a former general services commissioner in the administration of GOP Gov. Bill Lee. The governor and Green had already endorsed Van Epps. Trump lauded Van Epps for his military service.

It was too late 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 has been an outspoken advocate for socially conservative policies, including those that target LGBTQ+ people’s rights. Bulso has poured almost $700,000 of his own wealth into the race.

Outside groups have spent more than $3.1 million, almost all on the GOP side, with upwards of $1.1 million opposing Barrett.

School choice interests who have denounced Barrett’s vote against Gov. Lee’s statewide school voucher expansion are behind many of the attack ads against Barrett. Barrett, an attorney from Dickson, has said he pushed back against the “elites” in his own party and has praised a school choice tax credit initiative touted by Trump. He has the House Freedom Fund’s backing.

Those three have drawn 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 Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, contributed roughly $300,000 to his campaign through contributions and loans.

Also vying for the GOP nomination are Montgomery County Commissioner Jason Knight; Adolph Agbéko Dagan, a Clarksville businessman; former state legislative staffer Tres Wittum; and Joe Leurs, a retired Nashville Police undercover detective. Stuart Cooper, a Franklin businessman, also suspended his campaign and endorsed Van Epps after Trump’s endorsement.

Democrats attack Trump policies

The four Democratic candidates in the race, meanwhile, have attacked the legislation Trump dubbed the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” in addition to his tariffs.

Rep. Aftyn Behn is a social worker and community organizer who has focused on women’s reproductive health rights, including as a plaintiff in a lawsuit against a Tennessee law banning adults from helping minors get an abortion without parental permission. A judge has halted the provision’s enforcement.

Rep. Vincent Dixie, a businessman in the bail bond industry, has touted his record of having served as the first Black leader of a legislative caucus in state history. He said in a campaign video from a garbage truck that “Washington has been piling up garbage for working families.”

Rep. Bo Mitchell, who works in employee benefits, has focused on access to health care and his roots in Dickson County, a rural part of the district.

Darden Copeland founded the public affairs firm named Calvert Street Group and has worked as a consultant on Democratic campaigns. He has seized on being in the private sector amid a field of elected officials.