Trump sweating Tennessee election as ailing Republicans call in big guns to save vote: Live updates

Fox News and other MAGA media outlets have focused intently on Tennessee’s 7th District and the Democratic candidate Aftyn Behn.

The networks have included multiple on-air interviews with Matt Van Epps while framing Behn as the “AOC of Tennessee” and a “crazy left-wing radical.”

Fox News anchor Julie Banderas went as far to say that Behn’s “mother did not do a very good job in raising her” and that the congressional hopeful clearly has “mommy issues.”

Justin Baragona has more…

Former Vice President Al Gore said it was “no wonder that the president’s begun to panic” about the special election in Tennessee’s 7th district.

Gore was speaking Monday night on a virtual rally for the Democratic candidate Aftyn Behn, where Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also joined.

“I have never seen the political tides shift as far and as fast as we’re seeing them move in this election,” Gore said, the Tennessean reports.

Gore pointed to November’s races in Virginia, New Jersey, New York and Georgia where Democrats claimed victory, while California voters approved a new congressional map.

Voters “served notice with massive landslides that they’re sick and tired of Trump’s madness and cruelty,” Gore said on Monday’s call. “It’s no wonder that the president’s begun to panic about tomorrow’s election.”

Ocasio-Cortez said that “miracles can happen.”

“This race started off in a very unlikely place. This district is about R+22, or it was R+22, and now we have this race within striking distance, what we call the margin of effort,” she told supporters on the call.

Republicans have seized upon a comment Democratic candidate Aftyn Behn made about Nashville in 2020, which she claims has been “taken out of context.”

On podcast five years ago, Behn said of the country music Mecca: “I hate the city, I hate the bachelorettes, I hate the pedal taverns, I hate country music, I hate all of the things that make Nashville apparently an ‘it’ city to the rest of the country.”

Behn was asked about those remarks in a recent interview with the civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton on his MS NOW show.

“As a Nashvillian, I think we all get a little annoyed with the tourists that come to town, but that doesn’t mean I [don’t] love my city,” she said.

She told Newsweek the comments were “mischaracterized and taken out of context.”

“I was talking about why I decided to get involved in local elections, which are incredibly important,” Behn told the outlet. “Instead of complaining, I decided to jump in and run for office. I’m a state representative for downtown Nashville, and I couldn’t think of a greater honor than representing the city I love.”

President Donald Trump dialed in on Speaker Mike Johnson’s cell phone Monday night to speak to a crowd of supporters in Franklin, Tennessee, for Matt Van Epps.

Trump railed against the Democratic candidate Aftyn Behn as Johnson held his cell phone up to the microphone.

“She said two things above all else that bothered me. Number 1: She hates Christianity,” said Trump. “Number 2: She hates country music. How the hell can you elect a person like that?”

Republican congressional candidate Matt Van Epps is an Ohio native and Army veteran.

He grew up in an affluent suburb of Cleveland and moved to Nashville just over 10 years ago.

The 42-year-old served in Afghanistan and Iraq as a combat helicopter pilot before working in Tennessee’s Department of Veterans’ Services under Gov. Bill Haslam, and then moved to the Department of Transportation.

Van Epps has been backed by more than $1 million from MAGA Inc – the first time the Trump-supporting super PAC has spent money on a campaign since last year’s presidential race, according to the Associated Press.

The Republican said he is campaigning on “security, opportunity and prosperity.”

Donald Trump has been rallying for Matt Van Epps on Truth Social over the weekend on election eve.

“I am asking all America First Patriots in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District to please GET OUT AND VOTE TOMORROW for a phenomenal Candidate, Matt Van Epps, on Election Day, Tuesday, December 2nd!” Trump posted Monday night.

“You can win this Election for MAGA Warrior Matt Van Epps, who has my Complete and Total Endorsement. HE WILL BE A GREAT CONGRESSMAN and, unlike his Opponent, he cherishes Christianity and Country Music — She has openly stated that she hates them both!” added the president.

He also veered off message Tuesday morning to proclaim, “TRUTH SOCIAL IS THE BEST.”

Democrat Aftyn Behn is a progressive state lawmaker and represents Nashville in the Tennessee House.

Behn, originally from Knoxville, said that she decided to run for Congress after a close friend was denied life-saving medication on the state’s Medicaid program.

“That same week she received a letter saying her [Social Security Disability Insurance] benefits were being reviewed and cut. That’s when I knew I had to step up,” Behn told Newsweek.

The 36-year-old has spent her political career campaigning against rural hospital closures and for the expansion of Medicaid.

Her congressional campaign slogan is, “Feed kids, Fix roads, Fund hospitals.”

Trump has accused Behn of “hating Christianity” and country music; claims the Democrat says is because the president “doesn’t have a plan to address the rising cost of healthcare” or groceries.

Behn acknowledged she is the underdog in the race, but added: “But I love an underdog story. We’ve run an incredible campaign.”

Emerson College and The Hill conducted a poll for the special election in Tennessee’s 7th district.

It puts Republican Matt Van Epps at a slight lead at 48 percent, only two points ahead of Democratic state legislator Aftyn Behn, whom 46 percent of voters support.

It’s within the margin of error.

The congressional race in Tennessee has become surprisingly competitive, and today’s election could be a big sign of where President Donald Trump stands with the country – and the battle his party could face in 2026.

The Tennessee 7th district is one the president won by 22 points in 2024, but just a year later, a Democrat is putting up a serious bid to wrestle control of the seat from Republicans.

It would not only be an embarrassing defeat for the president, but would move the U.S. House of Representatives closer to a Democratic majority.

Eric Garcia breaks down the significance of the race…

President Donald Trump and Republicans will try to recover from recent losses around the country today when Tennessee voters head to the polls and select the next representative for the deep-red 7th House Congressional District.

The special election, which was organized after Republican Rep. Mark Green resigned this summer, saw an unexpected surge of spending in recent weeks, flooding the airwaves and filling residents’ mailboxes with campaign flyers.

Republican candidate Matt Van Epps is up against Nashville Democrat Aftyn Behn, who has been dubbed the “AOC of Tennessee” by the right.