by Rod Williams, Nov. 16, 2025- The above analysis shows that the 7th Congressional District is winnable by the Democratic nominee Aftyn Behn. It is hard to believe, but the analysis seems solid.
I have not voted yet and am in a quandary about what to do. On the one hand, I think Trump needs to be stopped, Congress needs to reassert its authority, and Congress needs to conduct oversight. I see Trump as a threat to America's continued existence as a democracy. Republicans in Congress have shown no appetite for holding Trump accountable. In the abstract, I want to see Democrats retake the House.
On the other hand, the Democratic voters of Tennessee's seventh congressional district nominated the most progressive candidate of the candidates running. Aftyn Behn has been a community organizer for Tennessee Justice Center and a community organizer for Indivisible and has advocated for an end to cash bail, defunding the police, and abolishing the Electoral College, and has advocated rolling back Tennessee's restriction on child genital mutilation procedures commonly called "gender affirming care." (1) She has the endorsement of the Progressive Democrats of America.
As much as I want to see Trump's march toward authoritarianism stopped, I don't think I can vote for Aftyn Behn. I could have voted for Bo Mitchell; but not Aftyn Behn. I held my nose in 2024 and voted for Kamala Harris. That does not mean I will continue to vote for far-left candidates, especially candidates for lesser offices.
I have watched videos and debates and visited his website, and familiarized myself with Republican candidate Matt Van Epps. I voted in the Republican primary and voted for him. I familiarized myself with all the Republican candidates running and perceived Van Epps to be the best-qualified and least Trumpy of the field. In this year's primary, I had to vote early due to being out of town on election day, and between the time I voted and primary election day, President Trump endorsed Van Epps. I was quite surprised. If I believed VanEpps would stand firm for conservative values against Trump's authoritarian nationalism, and he would not be just another Trump lackey, he would get my vote.
If this were normal times, I would not think twice about for whom I would vote. Looking simply at their position on the issues, I would vote for Van Epps in a heartbeat. There would be no contest. However, these are not normal times. Checking Trump's authoritarianism is the issue that may trump all others for me, but even that has limits. I can vote center-left in order to check Trump; I am not sure I can vote far-left. When I chose to vote for Harris over Trump, more was at stake. I was actually voting for who would occupy the highest office in the land, and Trump had attempted a coup, and Harris had not. In voting for one of 435 House members, less is at stake so the weight of the pressure to vote against my principles in order to curtail Trump's authoritarian polices is less intense.
When Democrats did not stand a chance of winning the 7th, I had decided my vote didn't matter and I would just sit out the election. Now, that my vote would matter, I still may sit out the election but can not do so with the same peace of mind.
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