NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- After defeating his Republican primary opponent by a mere 38 votes, scandal-plagued U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais appears to be the only one of Tennessee's nine incumbent House members to face a serious challenge in the general election.
DesJarlais won the right to defend his 4th District seat after narrowly winning the August primary against state Sen. Jim Tracy. DesJarlais, a Jasper physician who now opposes abortion rights, won despite a series of personal scandals that included affairs with patients, urging a mistress to seek an abortion and once holding a gun in his mouth for hours outside his ex-wife's room.
Democratic challenger Lenda Sherrell of Monteagle, who has kept up with the incumbent in fundraising, has characterized the voters' choice as being "about judgment, character, and honesty."