Debbie Lesko has won her re-election bid for the U.S. House of Representatives, according to the Associated Press.
With about 175,000 votes counted as of 11 p.m. Arizona time, Lesko had 56.6 percent of the vote, while Democratic challenger Hiral Tipirneni had 43.4 percent in the race for Arizona's 8th Congressional District.
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Polls suggested Tuesday's race would be tight, as Democrats attempted to regain control of the U.S. House of Representatives. Republicans have controlled the House since 2010.
The 59-year-old Lesko served in the Arizona State House and Senate before winning a special election to replace GOP Congressman Trent Franks in April. She defeated Tipirneni in that election, as well, gaining 52.6 percent of the vote to Tipirneni's 47.4 percent.
Tipirneni is a Phoenix-area physician who immigrated to the U.S. with her parents from India when she was 3 years old.
On Wednesday morning, Tipirneni released the following statement, congratulating Lesko:
"Sixteen months ago my friends, family, neighbors and I began a journey to challenge the status quo in Arizona's 8th Congressional District. Two elections, numerous town halls, and tens of thousands of conversations later, we know that communities in the West Valley and Anthem want real solutions to real problems our folks face every day.
Washington is broken, as is evidenced by its willingness to ignore serious issues and hide behind empty political slogans. This must stop, and hopefully it will with change coming to our nation's capital.
Running to represent our district in Congress has been the honor of a lifetime. I will be forever humbled by the gracious outpouring of support our campaign received, and there simply aren't enough "thank yous" to go around.
Even though our campaign wasn't victorious, our communities made their voices heard, demanding that this seat could no longer be taken for granted and that candidates must ask for the honor of representing us.
I congratulate Debbie Lesko on a hard-fought campaign, wish her good luck, and pray that she takes the wisdom and messages gleaned from our campaigns to better represent us in Congress."
