President Donald Trump held a tele-rally on Monday with Matt Van Epps, the former Tennessee state official whom the president endorsed last week for the special election in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District.
Van Epps stated in an email sent to supporters ahead of the tele-rally, “This is a historic moment in our campaign. With President Trump’s support, we’re making our final push to send a servant-leader to Washington who will keep our border secure, lower the cost of living, defend our freedoms, and deliver for Tennessee’s 7th District.”
Trump was introduced at the event by Club for Growth President Dave McIntosh, whose organization recently endorsed Van Epps.
“We’re here to support Matt Van Epps, he’s a fighter who will work with President Trump and deliver for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District,” said McIntosh. After noting Van Epps’ commitment to school choice, he told listeners, “Tennesseans deserve leaders like Matt who will support President Trump and not oppose him.”
Join President @realDonaldTrump for a tele-rally supporting our campaign TONIGHT at 5:30! 🇺🇸 Tune in to hear from President Trump ahead of Election Day tomorrow! #MattforTN #MAGA #TN7 #TN07 #TN #AmericaFirst pic.twitter.com/3R7btaRZDw
— Matt Van Epps for Congress (@MattForTN) October 6, 2025
Trump spoke next, and while confirming his endorsement and support for Van Epps, the president repeatedly thanked Tennessee voters for his three consecutive victories in the Volunteer State.
“Tennessee’s been a very special state for me, I won by a lot,” said Trump. “I just appreciate it, I love the place, I really do, and I want to talk to you about a very important special election taking place in your district.”
Trump told the audience, “Matt has my complete and total endorsement in this race, he’s outstanding in so many ways. The people that know him have no question about him.”
After celebrating Van Epps’ status as a U.S. Army veteran and West Point graduate, Trump stated the former Tennessee state official would support the goals of his administration if elected to Congress.
“He wants strong and secure borders so he’ll help us keep them that way,” said Trump. On public safety, the president added, “Matt will support our campaign to restore law and order to our cities and towns,” before noting that the Trump administration had recently deployed a task force to Memphis.
“The people understand. That’s why they lost the election, the people understand,” said the president.
Trump then said Van Epps will help Republicans keep taxes and regulations low, before adding that the Tennessean would become part of the bulwark preventing “radical Democrats” from reversing his administration’s progress.
“I think they’ve lost their minds, but we have to keep the momentum going, that’s why we have to elect Matt Van Epps to Congress, and I think he’s going to have a tremendously successful run,” said the president, who concluded by repeating his appreciation for Tennessee voters.
“Get out there and vote, and I want to thank Tennessee for being so nice to me,” said Trump. “The election would be called about one minute after the poll closed in every case… I love the people of Tennessee.”
In remarks delivered after Trump concluded his speech, Van Epps pledged to be a reliable ally to the administration if elected.
“I helped take out terrorists in Afghanistan, but now I’m on a new mission to help President Trump take on the woke radicals trying to destroy this country so we can save the nation we love,” said Van Epps.
He told the audience, “Together, under President Trump’s leadership, we will deport every criminal illegal, we will keep men out of girls sports, we will defend innocent life, protect our Second Amendment, stand with our veterans, bring down the cost of living, and make sure every American family can thrive again.”
Van Epps also noted Trump’s endorsement last week sparked at least two more for the Van Epps campaign, as both State Representative Lee Reeves (R-Franklin) and Nashville businessman Stuart Cooper ended their campaigns and endorsed Van Epps after the president’s announcement.
Van Epps is additionally endorsed by Governor Bill Lee and former U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07), whose decision to retire from Congress on July 4 provoked the special election.
Republicans in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District will select their nominee on Tuesday. The general election is scheduled for December 2.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Matt Van Epps” by Matt Van Epps.Â
THIS is party politics at its WORST. Why let this campaign go on for weeks and let good Republican candidates spend their hard-earned money and time ONLY to pull the rug from beneath them at the last minute? Van Epps is not a bad candidate, but he is obviously beholden to THE PARTY ahead of the people. George Washington warned of the perils of PARTY POLITICS. Here you have the perfect example of it. Let the people decide who can best represent their interests, and let the party acquiesce to the people and not the other way around. It’s a go-along-to-get-along politics and it drums the strongest people out by using tactics JUST LIKE THIS. It brought us the Bushes, Romney, Dole, and McCain. Ask Steve Largent and J.C. Watts about it. The party power machine is disgusting and they ought to be ashamed of themselves.