Republican Matt Van Epps, a former Army helicopter pilot, has won the special election for Tennessee’s 7th District , keeping the deep-red seat in party hands. But his relatively modest margin of victory Tuesday will likely fuel Democratic optimism heading into the 2026 midterms.

Van Epps was leading Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn 52 percent to 47 percent when The Associated Press called the race at 9:37 p.m. Eastern time. He will serve the remaining term of Republican former Rep. Mark E. Green, who resigned in July to pursue private-sector work.

Republicans started the election as heavy favorites to hold a seat that Donald Trump carried last fall by 22 points, according to calculations by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales. The largely rural Middle Tennessee district, which

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