Associated Press Calls Congressional Race for Herseth

This one is on a sad note for me, as Bruce is here in the room. But the Associated Press is also calling the Congressional Race at this point in favor of Congresswoman Herseth:

South Dakota voters on Tuesday sent Democratic Rep. Stephanie Herseth back to Congress to serve a second full term.

With 39 of the state's 818 precincts reporting, Herseth had 73 percent of the votes compared to 26 percent for Republican candidate Bruce Whalen. Larry Rudebusch of Bruce, representing the Libertarian Party, had 1 percent of the votes.

Herseth, a granddaughter of a former governor, said she thinks South Dakotans appreciate a common sense, bipartisan, forward-looking approach. She said she has voted with the GOP majority on decisions that provide the best outcome for South Dakota.

Ron Kjellson, a retired field service manager, said he appreciates that Herseth does not follow the Democratic Party line all the time. The 70-year-old Watertown man said he tries to vote for the person, not a party.

"I think she's done a good job walking the line," Kjellson said. "She is appealing to both Republicans and Democrats."

Whalen, an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, had said he could lend a different perspective if sent to Washington. He said he favors tax relief, frugal government spending, less reliance on federal assistance and is a strong abortion opponent.

Whalen raised less than one-fifth of the $200,000 Herseth took in during the July-through-September campaign reporting period.

Read it all here at the Rapid City Journal.