More and more county GOP organizations within the boundaries of the 7th Congressional District are hosting debates and straw polls in the run-up to the October 7 special election primary. Early voting starts September 17 and there are several similar events scheduled over the next few weeks.

With few public polls, as the campaigns keep their internal polling as protected as state secrets, the AFP/WTN survey is one of the few hints as to the status of the race. As a result, straw polls are the only glimpse into what may be developing. While largely unreliable in terms of predicting final results, the straw polls do give great fodder for political conversation, speculation and gossip.

Tuesday night, a combined gathering of Republicans from Cheatham and Montgomery County provided the latest straw poll insights.

The public forum featured questions asked by the moderators.   10 of the 11 candidates in the race (Jason Knight did not participate),  After the forum a straw poll was conducted, which produced the following results: