Democrat Jon Tester is claiming victory in his race to remain the senator from Montana after the Associated Press declared him the winner Wednesday morning.
The first-term senator was ahead of Republican Denny Rehberg by 49-45 percent — about 18,000 votes — with 83 percent of the vote in, according to CNN.
The two fought a neck-and-neck battle in the bright-red state. Rehberg, currently the state’s lone congressman, is a senior member of the GOP-led House Appropriations Committee.
Moments after AP called the race, the Tester campaign announced that the senator would deliver a victory speech in Great Falls.