Sen. Patrick Leahy has won an eighth term representing Vermont in Washington, D.C. The incumbent senator, who was widely expected to win, garnered more than 60 percent of the vote.
Leahy took the stage to loud cheers at Vermont Democrat party headquarters in Burlington on Tuesday night. Leahy, already the longest currently-serving member of the Senate, ran his campaign largely on his existing record.
BREAKING: Leahy re-elected to U.S. Senate in Vermont. @AP race call at 6:59 p.m. EST. #Election2016 #APracecall pic.twitter.com/6WTXNeE11E
— AP Politics (@AP_Politics) November 9, 2016
In speaking to his supporters, Leahy reiterated his goal to bring Vermont's voice and values to the floor of the United States Senate.
He said those values were reflected in his first Senate vote, where he voted to end the Vietnam War, and years later, in bringing support to Vermont when much so much of the state was damaged in Tropical Storm Irene.
Election 2016: Top Results, Live Updates And Photos From Vermont
Going forward, he said, “it means we stand for our constitutional duty, and when the POTUS nominates someone to the Supreme Court, have guts to stand up and vote!”
Leahy’s challenger, 57-year-old businessman Scott Milne, acknowledged that he had an uphill battle against the incumbent — though, in the end, he garnered about one-third of the vote.
Throughout the race, Milne targeted Leahy's fundraising and focused on the more than 40-year run of Leahy’s service, arguing that U.S. senators should be limited to two six-year terms.
