Politics
NEW: Dems Wasted $300K On Boosting Independent Candidate In TN Special Election
Democrat-aligned super PACs spent roughly $300,000 on boosting independent candidate Jon Thorp in the closely-watched special election in Tennessee’s Seventh Congressional District. This strategy was aimed at siphoning votes away from victorious Republican candidate Matt Van Epps, ultimately to little effect.
Thorp ultimately received 932 votes, (0.5% of the total), per official results from CNN and the Tennessee Secretary of State. Thorp, a combat veteran who switched from the GOP primary to run independently, was promoted via mailers and ads portraying Van Epps as a “RINO” (Republican In Name Only).
This “spoiler” tactic aimed to erode Republican turnout but had limited impact, as Van Epps ultimately emerged victorious by roughly nine percentage points, in line with the Cook Political Report’s partisan lean on the district of R+10.
Democrat-aligned super PACs spent significant resources on boosting Thorp’s candidacy, in addition to hefty spending on supporting Democratic Party nominee Aftyn Behn.
The Your Community PAC — a liberal-aligned group tied to the Sixteen Thirty Fund and Arabella Advisors network — spent at least $120,000 directly supporting Thorp. A little over $90,000 was spent on television, digital and radio ads in support of the independent candidate, while another $28,000 was spent on physical mailers, according to FEC records.
Earlier filings indicate the group spent roughly $60,000 on Thorp’s campaign in mid-November, while post election analyses indicate total outside spending on Thorp reached approximately $300,000 across mailers, ads, and voter outreach targeting conservatives.
Thorp ran as an independent after an unsuccessful GOP primary bid
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) and liberal-aligned groups also spent millions on boosting Behn’s campaign. The Democrat-controlled House Majority PAC spent roughly $1,000,000 on television and digital ads, while the liberal-aligned Your Community PAC spent close to $950,000 on mailers.
Other Democrat/liberal-aligned PACs spent an additional $200,000 on Behn’s campaign.
The race also drew significant spending from the RNC and Republican-aligned PACs, as the GOP ultimately outspent Democrats in the race with roughly $2.3 million in outside spending.
Notable expenditures included over $1.3 million from billionaire Jeff Yass, more than $600,000 from the Ken Griffin-backed Conservatives for American Excellence, $453,000 from the School Freedom Fund, seven figures from President Trump’s MAGA Inc. super PAC.
