Hours after defeating State Senator Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville), former Maury County Mayor and Congressman-elect Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) was welcomed by lawmakers to his new role.

“Thrilled to welcome [Andy Ogles] to Washington! He will fight hard to defend Tennesseans’ conservative values and help keep our state and nation on the right track,” said Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN).

“Congratulations to [Andy Ogles] on his victory tonight. Tennesseans want a true conservative leader who will fight back against Democrats’ radical agenda that has destroyed our economy,” said Representative Tom Emmer (R-MN-06), who himself won re-election Tuesday.

“Congratulations to Congressman-Elect [Andy Ogles] on his victory tonight in #TN05! I look forward to working with you in Congress!” said Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY-21).

“Conservative [Andy Ogles] has led the fight for lower taxes and conservative principles in TN. Thrilled to have him joining the fight in DC!” said Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN-03).

“Big win tonight for [Andy Ogles]! Congratulations on FLIPPING #TN05 RED. Looking forward to the hard work ahead, fighting for our shared conservative values and putting America First!” said House GOP Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA-01).

Campbell conceded in the early morning hours Wednesday, but took one last swipe at her Republican opponent.

“Democracy itself – Democracy itself right now is on the line,” said Campbell in her concession speech. “We have crazy people fighting over our country and we ignore this to our peril. Despite what your new congressman-elect says, we are not at war. We are in this together.”

Not everyone celebrated Ogles’ victory.

Failed 2020 state House candidate Brad Batt was terrified by Ogles’ victory.

“America’s embracement of white christian nationalism sickens me. Everything from Trump to Bill Lee to Andy Ogles is a shift towards fascism and it is terrifying,” he said on Twitter.

The far-left bloggers at Tennessee Holler were similarly dismayed, claiming that “the very extreme [Andy Ogles] will be in Congress.

Ogles will be sworn in as a member of the 118th U.S. Congress on January 20, 2023.

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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Andy Ogles” by Andy Ogles.