January 1, Van Epps Secures Tennessee House Victory

Wyatt’s Take

• Matt Van Epps wins a key Congressional seat for the GOP in Tennessee.
• Aftyn Behn faced criticism over past comments and support for radical causes.
• Trump urged voters to back Van Epps, securing another America First win.

Matt Van Epps, a Republican, took home a big win in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District special election on Tuesday night, beating Democrat Aftyn Behn. The seat was left open after former Rep. Mark Green stepped down for a private sector job.

The race drew national attention, with Van Epps highlighting the election’s role in keeping Republicans in control of the House.

“This is a critical election for the balance of power in the House for Republicans to hold the majority,” Van Epps said.

Many watched closely as Aftyn Behn, his opponent, faced questions over past statements where she discussed the term “birthers,” clarifying she meant “men and women who can give birth.”

“I think as an organizer and as an activist, we really have an opportunity here in this country to talk about what type of progressive policies we want to see as young women, and I think we have as birthers, as women who can give birth — men and women who can give birth — we can maybe leverage that as collective bargaining, which is the basis of this book that I’ve just started reading called ‘Birth Strike,’ and how we can really leverage collective bargaining when it comes to having children in this country,” Behn said during a past podcast episode.

Behn had also been outspoken following the tragic shooting at The Covenant School, often sharing her support for the transgender community. She revealed last year that her partner has a transgender son and that she spoke with trans activists after the shooting caused new fears in that community.

President Donald Trump encouraged “all America First Patriots” in the district to vote for Van Epps, which fired up turnout.

Tennessee’s 7th District stays in conservative hands as a result of this election.

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