National Dems See Andy Ogles as a Vulnerable Incumbent

by Eli Motycka, Nashville Scene, July 11, 2025- The national Democratic Party targeted U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee's 5th Congressional District with attack ads this week as part of a nationwide strategy to flip House seats in 2026. Small-dollar banner ads associating Ogles with declining rural health care began running on Meta platforms on July 7, according to site analytics — 16 months before he faces reelection in Tennessee’s 5th.

Republicans currently hold a 220- to 212-seat majority in the House of Representatives, with three vacancies due to the recent deaths of Raul Grijalva, Gerry Connolly and Sylvester Turner, all Democrats. This means Democrats could win the chamber by flipping three Republican-held seats while defending the 215 seats won by Democrats in 2024. Ogles defeated Republican challenger and Metro Councilmember Courtney Johnston in a contested primary and won the general election by more than 17 percentage points over progressive Democrat Maryam Abolfazli in November. 

... Ogles has gained a reputation in Congress as a member of the GOP’s far-right flank alongside Republicans like Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Lauren Boebert of Colorado and former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, who resigned last year. A week after Trump’s second inauguration, federal prosecutors abandoned a DOJ investigation into Ogles that was believed to center on campaign finances. Ogles previously paid a $5,750 civil penalty to the FEC for campaign finance violations. (read more)

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