2026 forecast · Tennessee 7th

Matt Van Epps is all but certain to win Tennessee's 7th District.

Darden Copeland vs Matt Van Epps. The model has Epps ahead by 15.4 points, winning 98 percent of 2,000 simulated elections.

Safe RModel R +15.4Updated October 22, 2026
Darden Copeland
Democrat
41.2%
106,081 projected votes
Matt Van Epps
Republican
56.6%
145,763 projected votes
98%Epps
2%Copeland
Epps all but certainEach square is one simulated election night, Epps wins about 98 of 100
RatingSafe R98% chance for Epps
Model marginR +15.4No polls in the race
80 percent rangeR +6.7 to R +24.02,000 simulations
Projected votes257,578Epps 56.6%

The district map

Every district in the state, shaded by its rating

Tennessee districts

9 districts
Safe DLikely DLean DToss upLean RLikely RSafe R

Vote share

Each candidate's projected share and the range of 80 percent of simulations

Darden CopelandDemocrat · 2% to win
41.2%
Matt Van EppsRepublican · 98% to win
56.6%

Scale runs from 25 to 75 percent. The dot is the forecast, the band is the 80 percent range and the brighter tick marks 50 percent.

Projected district vote

257,578 votes
CandidateVotesShare
Matt Van Epps R145,76356.6%
Darden Copeland D106,08141.2%
Andrew Koontz I5,7342.2%
Total257,578100%

Each candidate's expected vote in the On Point simulation, at the forecast's projected turnout.

The trend

Each side's chance of winning over the forecast's recent updates

0%25%50%75%100%2% Copeland98% Epps14 updates agoToday

Polling

Every poll in the average, and how the model reads it

The Tennessee governor polling average
25%30%35%40%45%50%55%MayJunJulAugSepOct32.6Green43.8Blackburn
The line is the On Point average: a robust LOWESS fit through the polls, weighted by recency, sample, voter screen and pollster grade, refit three times so outliers count for lessDot size is each poll's weight todayHover or use the arrow keys to read any day
What moves the average today
Spry StrategiesOct 16 · 635 LV · C+83%Blackburn +11.5
TargetSmart (D)Sep 12 · 600 LV · NR14%Blackburn +9.0
Targoz Market ResearchAug 26 · 1,149 RV · C+2.7%Blackburn +13.0

This is the same On Point polling average as the full average page. The forecast reads the polls through its own Election Day projection, shown as the On Point average in the table below, and blends it with partisan lean and fundamentals.

Polls of the race

Full average
PollsterSampleAgeMargin
On Point averageWeighted averageNo polls

Each margin is the poll as the pollster published it. The forecast counts every poll after its house effect and the undecided split, which is what the trail above shows; hover a margin for the counted value. Lean R and Lean D mark partisan leaning firms.

Model margin
Epps +15.4
Chance of winning
Darden Copeland2%
Matt Van Epps98%
Simulated vote
Darden Copeland41.2%
Matt Van Epps56.6%
Andrew Koontz2.2%
How the model gets there
Partisan leanD +22.0
FundamentalsR +15.8
With pollsR +15.7
Early vote turnoutD +0.3
With early voteR +15.4

Read from 0 ballots cast so far in Tennessee, against the party mix the forecast expected of them, with similar states and primary turnout. Early vote tracker

How we got here

From the state's partisan lean to the forecast, one stage at a time

D +26R +26Partisan leanthe state's baselineD +22.0Fundamentalsapproval, economy, candidatesR +15.8With pollsno pollsR +15.7With early voteturnout so farR +15.4
Methodology
Every county is rebuilt by simulating voters going to the polls, 2,000 times, from On Point Polling survey data, past results, and the polling average. How the model works.