More than a dozen people are running in the Tennessee primary special election on Oct. 7, including President Trump's preferred pick: Matt Van Epps.

The Democratic state rep is on a tight timeline ahead of December’s 7th Congressional District special election

As the special House election for a deep-red congressional district in Tennessee approaches, one issue has shaped the race above all else: Donald Trump

KNOXVILLE, Tenn — Early voting is now underway in the city of Knoxville, with five of the nine City Council seats on the ballot — a majority that will shape local decisions for the next four years.

Matt Van Epps won the GOP primary for the Tennessee special election to fill the U.S. House seat left vacant by former Republican Rep. Mark Green.

Republican Matt Van Epps and Democratic State Rep. Aftyn Behn will face off in the Dec. 2 general election to decide who will see out the remainder of Green’s term in Tennessee’s 7 th Congressional District. Green stepped down in July.

Matt Van Epps, a former commissioner in Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s administration, has won a crowded Republican primary in the special election to replace a GOP congressman who left office this summer.

Stuart Cooper and Lee Reeves suspended their campaigns after Matt Van Epps received an endorsement from President Donald Trump. You can learn more about the candidates here. You can find more information on polling locations here. Voting for the Special Primary Election ends at 7 p.m. on October 7.

Tuesday night's election had lots of drama, including a surprise upset that turned out to be nothing, a four way neck-and-neck race, and the emergence of Montgomery County as a pivotal battleground.

Matt Van Epps won the Republican nomination for a December special election in the state’s Seventh Congressional District. State Representative Aftyn Behn won the Democratic primary.