Republicans keep Tennessee congressional seat in unexpectedly close race

Republican Matt Van Epps has won Tennessee’s 7th Congressional seat, in a special election that turned into an unexpected battleground. Van Epps fended off Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn with nearly 53% of the vote, a much narrower margin than previous years.

The contest attracted national attention and millions of dollars from outside groups and both political parties — a departure from last year’s race when now-retired U.S. Rep. Mark Green scored a 22-point victory without much campaigning. Both parties have looked to this race as an indicator of how next year’s midterm elections may go.

Over the course of the race, nonpartisan groups like the Cook Political Report and Inside Elections changed their ratings of Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District to be less red. The latter rated th