Trump is trying to rally Republican votes for Tennessee’s special election

Live results: Special election for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District

FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee congressional seat previously won easily by President Donald Trump and Republicans became the unlikely center of the fight for Congress on Monday, as House Speaker Mike Johnson led rallies and former Vice President Al Gore and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told Democrats they could be on the verge of a massive upset.

Trump even called twice during the day to ask voters to support Matt Van Eps, the Republican nominee, in Tuesday’s special election.

Read more: Tennessee voters head to the polls in a special House election to test Trump’s strength

“The whole world is watching Tennessee now, and they’re watching your district,” the president said after Johnson put him on speakerphone during an event inside a garage full of old cars on his supporters’ sprawling ranch in Franklin. “It’s a big vote and it’s going to show something. It’s going to show that the Republican Party is stronger than ever.”

A few hours later, Trump drove the message home at a virtual rally, his second for Van Epps since the former Army helicopter pilot and state Public Services Commissioner became the Republican nominee.

The rush of attention toward the conservative 7th Congressional District of the U.S. House of Representatives came as Trump hopes to rebound from recent Republican losses across the country. Democrats want a strong showing that could propel them into next year’s midterm elections, which will determine their control of Congress.

Aftin Behn, a self-proclaimed “angry social worker” and progressive community organizer from Nashville, hit the ground running during her final campaign stops, including a virtual rally with Gore, a Tennessee native, and Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

Read more: This poll number has not favored Democrats since before the recent blue wave

Gore said people are suffering from rising grocery and health care costs while Trump runs “by far the most corrupt administration in history,” which has been empowered in Congress by “too many subservient cowards.”

“Having had the honor of representing the state of Tennessee in recent years, I want to tell you that I have never seen the political tide turn so far and as quickly as we see it moving in this election,” Gore said.

Ocasio-Cortez said the competitive race shows that “anything can happen and that miracles can happen, including in Tennessee” through hard work.

Some state Democrats have described Behn as “our AOC in Tennessee,” a nickname Republicans have seized on to mock Behn as too left-wing for the district.

“They’re bringing in all their heavy hitters because they think they can flip this seat from red to blue,” Johnson told reporters. “This won’t happen.” Johnson is trying to maintain a slim majority in the House of Representatives, and said the race is for “all the marbles.”

Republicans expressed concerns about turnout because early voting fell into Thanksgiving week and Election Day falls after the weekend. Van Epps had the support of a group of party leaders Monday, including National Chairman Joe Gruters, Gov. Bill Lee, and Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty.

“I think Matt is going to be OK,” Haggerty said. “But it’s not just winning. It’s winning by a wide enough margin to send a real message in Tennessee that we’re not going to stand for this.”

Former Vice President Kamala Harris appeared in Nashville to rally voters last month while on a book tour, and National Party Chairman Ken Martin also visited.

The 7th District is one of three seats redrawn in 2022 to undermine the influence of Nashville, the state’s largest city and a Democratic stronghold. Only about 1 in 5 of the 14 district’s registered voters are in Nashville. Last year, the district went to former Republican Rep. Mark Green by 21 percentage points and to Trump by a similar margin.

Behn condemned Trump’s tariffs and tax-cut legislation, both of which Van Eps supports.

Republicans have tried to turn Behn’s words against her in television ads, such as when she described herself as an “extremist” or claimed she “bullies” immigration agents and state police officers. A frequent target is comments Behn made about Nashville years ago, when she said “I hate this city” and complained about harassment such as bachelorette parties.

For the most part, Behn answered questions about those observations by redirecting to cost-of-living issues. But she responded specifically about Nashville, saying she wants it “to be a place where working people can thrive” even if she feels uncomfortable with some of its tourist attractions.

“The barrage of negative attacks is a result of the fact that they don’t have a plan to address the rising cost of health care,” Behn said at a campaign event Monday.

Behn’s constituent, Galen Smalls, said his primary concern is meeting people’s basic needs, such as funding schools, feeding children, supporting hospitals and maintaining roads.

“This is the bare minimum of what people need in order to thrive, not just survive,” Smalls said.

Meanwhile, John Roenczak said he will vote for Van Eps because he is concerned that the country has become too liberal. He said his main concern is illegal immigration.

“I feel like Trump is doing a good job, and this is the way we should go,” he said. “We want to continue Trump’s agenda in this region.”

The House Majority PAC has put $1 million behind Behn. Van Epps was backed by more than $1 million from MAGA Inc. Super PAC supporting Trump.

House Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries predicted an unexpectedly close race.

“Republicans have already lost,” Jeffries said Monday. “The fact that they are spending millions of dollars to fill a seat that Donald Trump just won by 22 points is extraordinary.”

Mathis reported from Nashville, Tennessee. Associated Press writer Leah Askarinam contributed from Washington.