Two years after losing to Republican Rep. Scott DesJarlais by 43 points, Democrat Victoria Broderick is leading in his deep-red Tennessee district by just 280 votes in the state’s unofficial final results — despite spending under $100,000 and airing no paid TV ads.
If her lead holds, the result would end DesJarlais’ 16-year congressional career. First elected in 2010, the Republican was seeking his ninth term in a district President Donald Trump carried by 24 points in 2024.
The latest FEC figures available before Election Day show DesJarlais’ campaign spent $508,166 through Oct. 14, compared with just $90,062 for Broderick. His campaign also raised more than seven times as much as hers — $667,181 to $94,217 — yet the longtime incumbent is trailing in the deep-red seat.
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Axios reported, citing AdImpact, that Broderick’s campaign had no record of airing paid television ads. Instead, she credited a grassroots operation that had been building for more than two years.
Broderick was not the only Democrat threatening to pull off a low-dollar House upset. Axios also highlighted a similar race in North Carolina, where High Point Mayor Cyril Jefferson currently leads Republican Rep. Addison McDowell 51.1% to 48.9%.
Axios reported, citing AdImpact, that Jefferson had no tracked advertising spending, although a separate tracker lists $2,000 in Google ads, including YouTube placements.
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McDowell had won the district by 38.3 points in 2024, according to election results.
Broderick told Axios that her apparent upset was not a surprise to her team.
“I know it was a shock for the rest of the country, but it wasn’t a shock for our team,” she said.
Jefferson similarly credited volunteers, saying, “You have to go engage them.”
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Wake Forest University political science professor John Dinan told local news outlet WFDD that challengers in such a Republican-leaning district would normally need “a lot of TV ads and a lot of money,” but “there wasn’t a whole lot of money spent.”
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The two races showed how grassroots organizing and strong local candidates can make traditionally Republican districts competitive despite major financial disadvantages.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect that the Associated Press has not yet called either race.
