Trump celebrates 'BIG WIN' as GOP narrowly retains key Tennessee seat.

President Donald Trump lauded Matt Van Epps win late Tuesday, as Republicans managed to retain a staunchly red Tennessee congressional seat, defeating progressive challenger Aftyn Behn. During the campaign, Trump criticized Behn, claiming she opposes Christianity.

Van Epps, a former Army helicopter pilot, captured Tennessees 7th District with just over 54% of the vote, overcoming Behn in a district that Trump himself had won by 22 points the previous year. This outcome raises the Republican majority in the House to 220 seats, although it will dip once Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) departs in January.

Trump immediately highlighted the victory, calling it another tremendous night for Republicans! Van Epps acknowledged the former presidents support in his victory remarks, stating, President Trump was fully behind us. That made a real difference. In Congress, Ill fully back him.

Despite the narrow loss, Democrats remained upbeat. Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin noted that Behns strong performance in a heavily pro-Trump district signals potential challenges for Republicans in upcoming midterms, sarcastically criticizing the GOP for investing millions just to barely hold onto this seat.

Behn, who received national attention from liberal supporters, faced scrutiny over deleted tweets and a podcast clip where she expressed disdain for Nashville and country music. She told CNNs Kaitlin Collins, The deck was stacked against us, especially in the deep red South, and weve closed the gap. For me, thats a reason to celebrate.

Author: Benjamin Carter