Republican Josh Hawley on Tuesday won the Senate race in Missouri, ousting Sen. Claire McCaskill who desperately tired to hold on to her seat by insisting she was “not one of those crazy Democrats.”
Mr. Hawley and Ms. McCaskill were locked in a virtual tie for months in polling. But with 82 percent of precincts reporting, the Republican attorney general prevailed with 53 percent of the vote the incumbent’s 43 percent.
Ms. McCaskill, a two-term incumbent and fierce campaigner, conceded the race shortly before midnight EDT.
The Democratic incumbent entered the race as one of the most vulnerable Senate Democrats because the Show Me State has been trending Republican and backed President Trump by nearly 19 pints in 2016.
Mr. Hawley, the state attorney general, ran as a Trump Republican and painted Ms. McCaskill as beholden to her party’s far left leaders and out of step with Missouri voters.
Ms. McCaskill called herself an “independent voice” who wasn’t afraid to challenge either party’s leadership.
In the final days of the race, she made dramatic moves to distance herself from her own party. She ran a radio add that boasted she was “not one of the those crazy Democrats.”
Mr. Trump made the race a top priority. He made repeated visits to Missouri, including hosting his final midterm Make America Great Again rally in Cape Girardeau, where he was joined on stage by hometown son Rush Limbaugh and Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
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