- The Washington Times - Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet retained his seat in Colorado late Tuesday even as his party appeared poised to lose its battle for the chamber.

The Associated Press called the race for Mr. Bennet more than an hour after polls closed.

GOP challenger Darryl Glenn, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, tried to paint Mr. Bennett as a reckless liberal who supported Obamacare and the Iran nuclear deal.

Yet he couldn’t close in on Mr. Bennet, who went on offense in the final days of the campaign, attacking Mr. Glenn for not believing climate change, wanting to outlaw abortion even in cases of rape or incest and even suggesting that Democrats were “evil.”

Hoping to draw a contrast, Mr. Bennet played up his willingness to work across the aisle, including his participation in the “Gang of Eight” that forged an immigration overhaul bill that passed the Senate in 2013 but never found life in the House.

Mr. Bennet was appointed to fill the Senate seat left by Ken Salazar, who became secretary of the Interior Department in 2009, and then won a full term in 2010.

Republicans initially saw Mr. Bennet as a key target in 2016, though its recruiting fell short amid intra-party chaos and a crowded primary in which stronger challengers either decided not to run or failed to make the ballot.

• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.

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