Victoria Broderick Upsets Republican Incumbent in Tennessee's 4th District

Victoria Broderick Upsets Republican Incumbent in Tennessee’s 4th District

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Victoria Broderick won Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District on Tuesday, unseating 16-year Republican incumbent Scott DesJarlais by fewer than 300 votes in the final unofficial tally. The victory came despite Republican-led mid-decade redistricting designed to make all nine of Tennessee’s U.S. House districts favor the GOP.

Throughout the 2026 campaign, political groups and media largely focused on the 5th and 9th districts, where Democrats fielded well-known fundraisers Chaz Molder and Justin Pearson.

Broderick, a mid-30s tech professional and mother of two from Lincoln County, marks a reversal from 2024, when she lost to DesJarlais by more than 40 percentage points under the district’s previous boundaries. This year, redistricting moved the southeastern corner of Nashville and Davidson County into the 4th District, and Broderick won that Davidson County portion by more than 25,000 votes while holding serve in purple Rutherford County.

From 2024 Loss to Grassroots Victory

Broderick first entered the race in May 2024 after learning DesJarlais was expected to run unopposed. She surged to victory in the August Democratic primary, defeating well-funded Nashville Council Member Mike Cortese with a fraction of his budget. Throughout the general election, Broderick did not raise much money, while DesJarlais, whose personal scandals have followed him since the start of his political career, did little campaigning.

Broderick, of Fayetteville, defeated DesJarlais, who was seeking his ninth term. Upon learning she had won, her first reaction was disbelief: “I remember saying, ‘Wait, what?'” She launched her bid after learning DesJarlais was expected to run unopposed, joking, “Over my dead body.” DesJarlais, a physician, has faced scandals including sexual relationships with patients and pressuring former partners to get abortions despite his anti-abortion branding.

Broderick has lived in Tennessee since the ninth grade and attended Austin Peay State University. She previously served as chair of the Lincoln County Democratic Party and cited the 2022 Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade as motivation for her political activism. Her father was an immigrant and her grandmother a World War II refugee.

Redistricting and the Path to Victory

Tennessee Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting, aimed at splitting Memphis’s Democratic congressional districts, had the downstream effect of pulling heavily Democratic Nashville into the 4th District for the first time since 2022. As of publication, DesJarlais had not conceded and had not been reached for comment.

The victory means heavily Democratic Nashville, without Democratic congressional representation since 2022, will have it again.

Broderick told the Nashville Banner that she would open district offices in Tullahoma and Murfreesboro, ensuring representation for the district’s rural communities. She campaigned on protecting rural hospitals, addressing housing and childcare shortages, and reproductive freedom.

Victoria Broderick, October 2026
Photo: nashvillescene.com

Priorities and Bipartisan Pledges

Looking ahead to her first term, she said she plans to focus on constituent outreach, accountability and bipartisan policymaking, emphasizing that she intends to represent all residents regardless of how they voted.

A self-described working-class mom from rural Tennessee, Broderick campaigned on safety, affordability, freedom and equity, including decriminalizing marijuana, holding AI companies and data centers accountable, reducing gun violence and protecting religious liberty. Her campaign manager Christian Gay said, “We are ready to show that better representation in this district is possible and fight for the needs of everyday Americans and everyday Tennesseans.” Broderick added, “We won without political insiders, endorsements, or corporate PAC money.” She has spoken about the financial challenges working families face, stating that the wealthiest individuals and biggest corporations should pay their fair share rather than leaving working families to cover the difference. She said, “I envision a district where I’m here meeting with constituents, opening those doors for them so that they can have the representation they deserve.”

The win came during a challenging midterm night for Republicans, though the GOP maintained control in Tennessee; in the governor’s race, U.S. Sen.

“When I decided to run for Congress, I was told District 4 wasn’t winnable,” Broderick said in a statement. “Tonight, the people of this district proved otherwise.”

The 4th Congressional District contains southeastern Davidson County, the majority of Rutherford County and all of Cannon, Coffee, Warren, Van Buren, Bledsoe, Sequatchie, Grundy, Marion and Franklin counties.

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