Can A Democrat Win Back One Of The Nashville Seats Despite The Super-Partisan Gerrymander?

Mike Cortese Is About To Try To Oust Andy Ogles

One of Congress’ most detestable characters— and imagine what that entails in this Congress— is Andy Ogles, a Republican the GOP legislature carved up Nashville for to give him a seat he could win. He’s not well liked, not even by Republicans— basically, another compulsive liar along the lines of George Santos. His time in Congress has been a non-stop stream of grievance politics, performative outrage and outright fabrications. Ogles lied about everything from his résumé to his educational background to his alleged law enforcement experience— and just like Santos, he’s relied on the assumption that voters either won’t notice or won’t care. But Ogles doesn’t have the bizarre charm or tragicomic flair that made Santos a media magnet. He’s just mean, dishonest and dull.

His Republican colleagues, wary of what happened with Santos, tend to treat him like a potential liability. Behind closed doors, they roll their eyes at his attention-seeking antics and avoid him in policy discussions. He’s not there to govern— he’s there to troll the libs, raise money off culture war dog whistles and play MAGA for the cameras. His record is virtually empty of accomplishments, unless you count obstruction and Twitter feuds as achievements.

Ogles represents everything wrong with the GOP’s strategy of turning redistricting into a cynical game of extremism amplification. When they dismantled Nashville’s congressional district to squeeze out another few Republican seats, they handed a bullhorn to one of the most unserious, underqualified people to hold office in Tennessee in decades. And now, his constituents are stuck with someone who seems more interested in auditioning for Newsmax than in actually helping the people he supposedly represents.

But the 2026 race may finally give Tennessee voters— or at least the portion of them stuck in Ogles’ gerrymandered Frankenstein district— a shot at redemption... That’s where Mike Cortese comes in— a new candidate and everything Ogles isn’t. While Ogles spends his days feeding the outrage machine and chasing MAGA celebrity, Cortese is the kind of pragmatic, policy-focused leader who actually gives a damn about helping his community.

A Metro Nashville councilmember, Cortese has already shown what responsible public service looks like. He’s built a reputation for being thoughtful, responsive, and results-oriented— more interested in improving the lives of his constituents than scoring cheap political points. On the Council, he’s worked on issues like public transportation, workforce development and affordable housing. He’s engaged, present and prepared— attributes so foreign to Ogles’ style of representation they might as well be from different planets.

Cortese’s résumé isn’t full of empty bluster or invented heroics; it’s rooted in real work. He’s a small business owner, a leadership coach, a longtime Nashville resident and a former adjunct professor at Belmont University. His experience spans education, the music business, entrepreneurship and public service— none of it flashy, but all of it relevant. He doesn’t pretend to be a cowboy, a cop, or a crusader. He doesn’t need to.

And while it’s true that TN-05 was carved up to elect someone like Ogles— splitting Nashville to dilute its Democratic power— that doesn’t mean this seat is permanently out of reach. Far from it. The 2022 race saw Democrat Heidi Campbell hold Ogles to just 56.3% of the vote, despite the disadvantage of a minutely gerrymandered district and a tough headwind. As for this cycle, Ogles, with his lies, extremism and lack of legislative accomplishments, hasn’t exactly strengthened his hand since then.

The 2026 midterms won’t be a presidential cycle, but they’ll be a referendum—on Trumpism, on competence, on whether Tennesseans want representatives who serve the people or serve themselves. If Cortese has the resources he needs to  show voters he’s the grown-up in the room, that he’s serious about governing and serious about service, this race becomes a real contest.

It’s too soon to know what kind of campaign he’ll run or whether the Democratic infrastructure will get behind him— there are 2 other Democrats in the race so far, James Torino and Joyce Neal. But for anyone looking to push back against extremism, incompetence and performative cruelty, keeping an eye on this race— and on Mike Cortese— seems to be worth it already.