WASHINGTON — A top Democratic super PAC is making a major investment into an upcoming Tennessee special election, seeking to make a statement ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

House Majority PAC, which has ties to House Democratic leadership, announced on Friday a $1 million investment across television and digital platforms to boost Democrat Aftyn Behn in the Dec. 2 election for Tennessee’s deep-red 7th District.

Behn, a state representative, faces Republican Army veteran Matt Van Epps in the race to complete the unfinished term of GOP former Rep. Mark E. Green, who resigned earlier this year.

“As Democrats have racked up wins by running on affordability and lowering costs — our momentum continues to build,” House Majority PAC spokesperson CJ Warnke said in a statement. “No Republican-held seat is safe, and HMP will do whatever it takes to win the House in 2026.”

Republican groups, led by President Donald Trump’s political operation, have made significant investments of their own in support of Van Epps, who previously served in Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s Cabinet.

But Democrats are coming off strong performances in Virginia, New Jersey and other states in this month’s off-year elections, and have since turned their sights to the 7th District contest, set to be the final federal election of the year. Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin visited the district earlier this month, and former Vice President Kamala Harris appeared Tuesday at an event for Behn in Nashville.

Van Epps is favored to hold the largely rural Middle Tennessee seat, which includes parts of Nashville and was drawn by state Republicans to be safely red when they split up the Democratic-leaning city in the state’s most recent redistricting round. Trump carried the 7th District by 22 points last year, according to calculations by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales.

Democrats, though, are hopeful the election could mark the latest in a string of overperformances for the party in special elections this year.

“The special election nature of it allows us to really work around the gerrymandering in a productive way,” Behn said in a September interview.

Republicans, meanwhile, are pulling all the stops to oppose Behn, a former organizer with the progressive group Indivisible, and blunt Democrats’ political momentum. MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, has spent nore than $1 million on the race, while the political arm of the conservative Club for Growth has spent $328,000. Conservatives for American Excellence Inc., which has ties to GOP megadonors Paul Singer and Ken Griffin, had spent $672,000 as of Friday.

Van Epps has also drawn on the support of party leaders, with Trump holding a telerally on his behalf last week.

Van Epps and Behn each won competitive primaries in October to claim their party nominations. Boosted by a late Trump endorsement, Van Epps bested a crowded primary field with a majority of the vote. Behn narrowly prevailed over three opponents on the Democratic side.

According to pre-general election fundraising reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, Behn went into the final stretch of the campaign with a slight fundraising advantage. She raised $1.2 million through Nov. 12, including $1 million since Oct. 1. She ended the period with $522,000 on hand. Van Epps raised $993,000 through Nov. 12 and had $231,000 available heading into the campaign’s final weeks.

Inside Elections shifted its race rating Thursday from Solid Republican to Lean Republican.

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