As an off-cycle special election, turnout in the special election primary for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District race was down significantly compared to the 2024 general election.
Across both parties’ primaries, around 67,000 votes were cast last month compared to almost 330,000 in 2024, when now-retired U.S. Rep. Mark Green, a Clarksville Republican, beat Democrat Megan Barry by a nearly 20-percentage point margin.
But in a glimmer of hope for Democrats, their primary turnout of 31,000 nearly matched that of Republicans with 36,000. The Democratic Party hasn’t won Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District in over 40 years, and in 2022, the district was redrawn as part of a Republican gerrymander.
Republican former General Services Commissioner Matt Van Epps will face Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn in the general election to replace Green on Dec. 2. The Cook Political Report classifies the seat as a “Solid Republican,” but internal polling by Behn’s campaign shows she trails 52% to 44%.
Republican turnout in the primary was down by more than 80% in many Nashville precincts but also in much of Clarksville and its surrounding rural areas, according to precinct data analyzed by the Tennessee Lookout. In terms of raw votes, Republicans saw turnout drop by almost 2,000 voters in some precincts in Cheatham and Williamson counties.