Matt Van Epps, who was backed by Trump, is projected to defeat Democrat Aftyn Behn in a congressional district the president won by 22 percentage points in 2024.

Republicans saw a dip in their share of the total vote in every District 7 county, while Democrats made gains in every county.

One GOP consultant, granted anonymity to speak candidly, worried the result in Tennessee signals that Republican voters won’t turn out in significant numbers for candidates other than Trump — a problem that has plagued Republicans in the past.

Tennessee’s Seventh District was created to be safely Republican, but in recent special elections across the country Democrats have done significantly better than they did in 2024.