(Bloomberg) -- US Representative Elissa Slotkin of Michigan was elected senator, narrowly defeating Republican Mike Rogers and keeping the seat in the hands of Democrats.
Slotkin, 48, was leading Rogers, a former congressman, by 48.6% to 48.3% with 99% of the vote counted, according to the Associated Press. She will replace Senator Debbie Stabenow, who is retiring. A Democrat has held the seat for the past 24 years.
Slotkin’s victory is a bright spot for Democrats in an election that saw Republicans win back control of the Senate with at least 52 seats.
Her win could be a sign that Michigan voters favor a more centrist approach. Slotkin campaigned on mainstay Democratic issues like reproductive rights and creating jobs in the state, but she also ran advertisements claiming to be a budget hawk who will rein in government spending.
Slotkin is a former CIA analyst who worked in Iraq during the US invasion. Her great grandfather founded a meat company that eventually got the hot dog contract at Tigers Stadium in the 1950s.
--With assistance from Alisa Parenti.
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