CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Three Democratic candidates for Congress, District 7, shared their platforms with voters at a public forum at Austin Peay State University on Monday night, discussing issues including healthcare, the economy, immigration and workers’ rights.

There are 19 candidates in the race, four of them Democrats. Those attending on Monday were state Rep. Aftyn Behn, Darden Copeland and state Rep. Vincent Dixie. State Rep. Bo Mitchell did not attend.

They are running to replace Rep. Mark Green, a Republican who has represented U.S. House District 7 since 2019, who resigned July 20 to go back into the private sector. The special election primary to replace him will be Oct. 7, with early voting starting Wednesday. The general special election Dec. 2.

Vincent Dixie: A ‘less cumbersome’ immigration process

Dixie has represented Davidson County, District 54, for the last seven years and describes it as a “microcosm” of District 7.

He addressed concerns stemming from President Donald Trump’s “one big beautiful bill.” He explained that ICE received an increase to their funding, a $150 billion budget, to increase salaries, signing bonuses, expand deportation operations and increase detention capacity, and stated that the “big beautiful, ugly bill” needed to be rebuilt.

“We have to make sure this particular (immigration) process is less cumbersome and easier for people to have a pathway to citizenship,” Dixie said. “We all understand the immigration process is broken, but we can fix it if we put our mind to it.”

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“We have a president that wants to be the king at the big table right now,” Dixie said. “And we have a Congress that is conceding this power to that ‘want-to-be’ king and dictator. So, we have to make sure that we send somebody there that’s not going to bend to that person and stand up tall for us – because politicians that have been elected, they have lost touch with the everyday person.”

Aftyn Behn: New leadership for ‘workers-first’ economy

Behn stressed the importance of needing new leadership, explaining that the politicians in Washington have no understanding about the struggles her generation is facing in Tennessee: unprecedented chaos, crippling debt and profit authoritarianism have made life unaffordable.

She advocated for a “workers-first economy;” in order to protect union workers, the government needs to restore funding and empower the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to do the right thing. Behn said that she would co-sponsor the Protect America’s Workforce Act, which restores collective bargaining rights for nearly 67% of the federal workforce.

MORE: Early voting for Congress primary begins this week in Montgomery County

Additionally, Behn weighed in with her support for a bill that was introduced earlier this year: the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act, which establishes “new criteria for determining which states and political subdivisions must obtain preclearance before changes to voting practices may take effect.” She said this is an opportunity to organize around a bill like this, especially in West Tennessee, where many people have felt neglected and marginalized.

“You can send the generation of Democrats who got us in this mess, or you can send me.”

Darden Copeland: Renewable energy, privacy from AI

When Copeland got out of college, he served as a campaign manager and political strategist on a number of congressional and presidential campaigns. That, Copeland said, was how he was going to make change in the world.

During the forum, Copeland weighed in on the recent surge of data centers across Tennessee and the impact on utility bills and the environment, stating that the Tennessee Valley Authority needs to get serious about renewable energy and solar development.

“The Green Invest Program is great, but we need more utility scales, solar energy development in the TVA marketplace if we’re going to have meaningful power generation,” Copeland said. “AI and data centers? They’re not going anywhere. We have to figure out where they’re located. Some of that’s going to be a local decision, and some of that’s going to be federal. TVA has to be a partner in that, and my commitment would be to absolutely work with localities to figure out how these things can be regulated the right way.”

Copeland spoke about the steps he would take in Congress to protect peoples’ rights to privacy and interstate travel as AI and datamining tech expands, explaining that the laws need to be updated, and while there’s no national law currently on federal surveillance, localities are debating surveillance through traffic cameras and license plate readers.

About the forum

The forum for Democratic candidates was organized by six grassroots organizations: Central Labor Council of Nashville/Middle TN, SEIU Local 205, Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood, Tennessee Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, The Equity Alliance Fund, and TIRRC Votes.

Who’s running for Congress, District 7

Here are the 15 candidates that will be on the ballots for Congress, District 7.

Republican Primary:

  • Jody Barrett: Dickson small-business owner and state House member.
  • Gino Bulso: A Brentwood trial lawyer and state House member.
  • Stuart Cooper: Franklin, with Flagler Technologies.
  • Adolph Agbéko Dagan: Clarksville veteran, minister and small business owner.
  • Mason Foley: Franklin, former staff member for U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell. Now with Main Street Health.
  • Jason Knight: Montgomery County commissioner and former Clarksville City Council member, small-business owner and military veteran.
  • Joe Leurs: Retired from Marines and Metro Nashville Police Department.
  • Stewart Parks: Nashville real estate agent.
  • Lee Reeves: Franklin state House member.
  • Matt Van Epps: Nashville former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of General Services, military veteran.
  • Tres Wittum: Former Tennessee Senate staff member.

| MORE: 4 Republican candidates for Congress talk national debt, Trump agenda at Kiwanis meeting

Democratic Primary:

  • Aftyn Behn: Nashville social worker and state House member.
  • Darden Copeland: Nashville businessman.
  • Vincent Dixie: Nashville businessman and state House member.
  • Bo Mitchell: Bellevue state House member.

| MORE: 3 Democratic candidates for Congress tell Clarksville town hall how they can ‘flip this seat’

Independents:

  • Teresa “Terri” Christi
  • Bobby Dodge: Franklin
  • Robert James Sutherby
  • Jon Thorp: Springfield military veteran.

U.S. House District 7 covers the western portion of Middle Tennessee, spanning from the Kentucky state line to the Alabama state line. It includes Montgomery County and portions of Nashville/Davidson County and Williamson County.

Early voting dates and registration deadlines

For the Oct. 7 primaries, early voting will be Sept. 17-Oct. 2.

For the Dec. 2 general election, voters must register by Nov. 3. Early voting will be Nov. 12-26.

You can check your registration, update your information, or register to vote at GoVoteTN.gov or by using the free GoVoteTNApp.

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