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Democrats upset incumbent House member in deep-red Tennessee
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images
Amid a historic blue wave, Tennessee Democrats apparently scored a shocking upset and flipped a Republican U.S. House seat while narrowly falling short in four other races that the state GOP gerrymandered earlier this year.
- The unexpected win came in District 4 where unheralded Democrat Victoria Broderick unseated incumbent Rep. Scott DesJarlais by less than 300 votes, according to the Tennessee Secretary of State's election results.
Why it matters: It was a rare victory for Democrats in a state where Republicans have enjoyed a political stranglehold for two decades. The race attracted very little fundraising.
- Democrats lost by just a few percentage points in other districts spanning from Memphis to Nashville.
The Associated Press had not called the race as of 5am ET Wednesday, but Secretary of State posted the "unofficial final results" in the Broderick-DesJarlais race.
- It's unclear if any provisional or mail-in ballots still needed to be counted. The margin was so thin, a rare recount procedure could be triggered.
