Dixie, Copeland square off in Democratic primary for redrawn 7th District

In a race to capture the newly-drawn 7th Congressional District seat in Tennessee, state Rep. Vincent Dixie and businessman Darden Copeland are taking slightly different strategies in the Democratic primary with the ultimate goal of unseating the Republican incumbent.

Dixie, who represents House District 54 in northern Davidson County, and Copeland, a former political operative who owns Calvert Street Group public affairs firm, started running after the Tennessee legislature voted to redraw congressional districts, at President Donald Trump’s request, on the heels of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that gutted a provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that protected majority-minority districts.

Dixie, a bail bondsman and the first Black lawmaker to become chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said recent gerrymandering movies affecting Memphis and Nashville not only diluted Black voters with rural Republicans but “eliminated the Democratic voice,” which makes up about 40% of the state’s vote.

Rolling back the Voting Rights Act, which provided opportunity to his grandmother and mother to vote, undercuts democracy, he said. 

Dixie contends that’s the main difference between him and Copeland.

“It’s the passion of the fight. My fight is personal, because I have to fight like my life depends on it,” Dixie said.

In contrast, Copeland said he’s running with Dixie, not against him, in the effort to oust Republican U.S. Rep. Matt Van Epps of Clarksville.

Both candidates wound up in a virtual tie last year in a special election to replace Republican Rep. Mark Green but lost to Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn in the primary. Copeland picked up 24.8% of the vote, followed by Rep. Bo Mitchell with 24% and Dixie with 23.2%.

Behn then lost to Van Epps by 9 percentage points, in what her campaign considered a strong showing after previous Democratic losses by 20-plus points.

The primary is set for Aug. 6 with early voting starting on July 17.

Other Democratic candidates are Saletta Holloway, a former Metro Nashville Council member and Meharry Medical College executive, and Joshua Warren Sales, a teacher and Army veteran from Pegram.

Holloway, who served two terms on the council from 1995 to 2003, said on her website she would draw on experience in healthcare leadership to expand affordable care for families, in addition to ensuring veterans and their families receive the benefits they’ve earned, supporting small businesses and advocating for infrastructure and economic investment in rural areas.

Sales said on his site that “Life ain’t fair. But it’s not supposed to be rigged.” He claims he would “un-rig a system written by people who never have to live with the consequences.” Primarily, he targets billionaires in his statements and would sponsor “fully-funded” each month in his first year in office, dealing with everything from universal healthcare and affordable housing to Social Security and tax fairness.

Sales said he would accept no corporate political action committee money and hold 50 town halls in the district’s eight counties.

Copeland, who ran multiple TV ads and mailers last fall, said he is saving his money for the general election and will consider it a loss even if he falls one vote short of victory in November. 

“Van Epps may very well be a good man, but he will never be his own man,” Copeland said. “He’s pledged blind allegiance to Trump and Speaker (Mike) Johnson.”

If the House speaker says Congress is going to cut Social Security, Van Epps will vote for it, Copeland said. And when Trump said he didn’t need congressional approval to enter a war, Van Epps agreed, he said.

Copeland, who touts working-class roots on his website, believes voters are “going to sour” on someone who’s following orders rather than looking out for District 7.

Weighing the new 7th District

The legislature reconfigured the 7th Congressional District in a May special session called by Gov. Bill Lee, putting in western and northern Davidson County, most of Sumner County, Cheatham, Dickson, most of Montgomery, Robertson, Trousdale and Macon counties, and dropping six rural counties west of Davidson.

Dixie said he’s finding out Sumner County has been largely forgotten as he campaigns. With a larger slate of Democratic candidates on local ballots this year, he contends those voters are “ready to come out from hiding.” 

“I just think people are tired of what’s going on in this country right now, and people are tired of waking up and not knowing what embarrassment we’re going to have to face that day because of the leadership,” he said.

Dixie touts his ability to make things happen in a Republican supermajority while also butting heads with GOP leaders. He passed the Science English and Mathematics Advanced Course Work Act, enabling more Black students to enroll in tougher courses. He failed to enact legislation to increase the use of glucose monitoring devices but worked with TennCare to change its policy, which is allowing more people on the state’s Medicaid program to use the devices to control diabetes.

Dixie said one of the keys to winning the election will be to push voters between 18 and 25 to go to the polls. 

Persuading Republicans to flip to a Democrat and increasing Democratic voter turnout will be critical.

Copeland, though, said he believes he needs to improve in Davidson County, after making a strong showing in Montgomery, Cheatham, Robertson and Dickson counties last year in a concerted effort to “win everywhere.”

Neither candidate would say how much they’ve raised and spent. The reporting deadline was Tuesday.

Copeland raised $588,000 last year, including a $100,000 loan, and spent $495,600. Dixie brought in nearly $178,400, with a $3,500 loan, and spent $177,162.