The Republican candidate won an open House seat in Kansas in a special election on Tuesday night after the GOP made a last-minute effort to hold the seat in a surprisingly close race.
Kansas state treasurer Ron Estes won the election by seven points over Democrat James Thompson. Estes will fill the House seat vacated by CIA chief Mike Pompeo.
Estes pulled off a win after Republicans panicked in the final week of the race when an internal poll showed Estes leading by just one point. The House Republicans’ campaign arm infused nearly $100,000 into the race in the final days. President Donald Trump recorded a robocall supporting Estes, and Sen. Ted Cruz campaigned for the Kansas Republican on Monday.
Though Estes secured the seat, he won the district by just seven points, whereas Trump won the district by 27 points in November.
