GOP 'resignations and retirements' could follow close race for Tennessee: analysis

A political analyst has suggested there could be a draft of "resignations and retirements" in the GOP following the close race in Tennessee.

Though the Republican Party's Matt Van Epps would ultimately win the seat, the close margin by which he did so could be a cause for concern in the GOP. Epps defeated Democrat Aftyn Behn in the congressional special election with the race called by The Associated Press.

Van Epps held a 52% to 46% lead, and it's a close margin that expert Sam Seder believes will lead to a wave of departures from the Republican Party. Speaking with Molly Jong-Fast, he said, "I'm convinced that if Bain gets in there, within four or five points, or wins for that matter..."

"I think you're going to see another two or three resignations or retirements, I should say, maybe even a resignation of House members because if she's going to overperform by 17 points with all the deployment of all the money, all the Trump, most Congress people are not going to get that much attention in their midterm races."

"You've got a lot of people who are going to be like, 'I don't want to spend the next year fundraising or running against somebody in the primary who's going to be a pain, then running in the general election."

"And even if I win, which means I have to overperform what I did in the 2024 election by 10, 15 points, I'm going to be in the minority.'"

"If this is even remotely close, I think we're going to see more resignations." Behn would fall just 6% short of Epps' votes. In his victory speech, Epps said, "This race was bigger than just one campaign."

"It represented a defining moment for Tennessee and for the direction of the country. Running from Trump is how you lose. Running with Trump is how you win. Our victory was powered by a movement of Tennesseans that are ready for change."

"We are grateful to the President for his unwavering support that charted this movement and catapulted us to victory. President Trump was all-in with us. That made the difference. In Congress, I’ll be all-in with him."