Trump backs Van Epps for Tennessee’s 7th District, attacks Democrat Behn

President Donald Trump called on Tennesseans to vote for Matt Van Epps, the Republican candidate in the special election for the Volunteer State’s 7th Congressional District, in a post on Truth Social on Sunday.

Just two days before the December 2 election, Trump urged “all America First patriots in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District who have not yet voted to get out and vote.”

The president claimed that Van Epps’ Democratic opponent, state Rep. Aftin Behn, “hates Christianity, will take your guns, wants open borders, trans for all, men in women’s sports, and openly despises country music.”

“She said all these things accurately, without a doubt, they are on the record!” Trump claimed. “Don’t take this race for granted.”

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“Radical left Democrats are spending a fortune to beat one of our best candidates ever, Matt Van Epps!”

Trump concluded that Van Epps had his “full and complete endorsement” and “would never let you down!”

Van Epps, a lieutenant colonel in the Tennessee Army National Guard and a former Army helicopter pilot, officially received Trump’s endorsement earlier this year and called his support an “incredible honor.”

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Democratic congressional candidate, State Rep. Aftin Behn, D-Nashville, attends a campaign event during the 7th District special election, Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, in Nashville. (Photo by George Walker IV/AP)

Trump’s post comes as Behn is attracting national attention for her past comments, which range from anti-police rhetoric to her hatred of country music and Nashville’s drinking culture.

The Democrat has also been a frequent advocate for defunding the police, even suggesting defunding the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department.

Last week, Behn was asked to clarify her previous statements during an episode of MS NOW’s “The Weekend.”

“In 2020, you posted some since-deleted tweets that were highly critical of the police… Clearly, 2020 has been an eventful year. Do you still stand by those comments? If not, is there anything you’d like to clarify?” asked host Katherine Rumble.

U.S. Congressional District 7 candidate Aftin Behn speaks during a policy forum on Monday, September 8, 2025, in Dixon, Tennessee. (Photo by George Walker IV/AP)

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“I’m not going to engage in news talking points, but what I will say is that our communities need solutions, you know,” Behn responded. “We need local people to make the decisions, solve local problems with local solutions. This is not the federal or state government overreach that we are dealing with in Nashville and our cities across the state of Tennessee.”

Paul Steinhauser, Alec Schimmel and Hannah Banrick of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.