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While Republicans have recaptured a majority of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, they weren’t able to do the same with the Senate (via The Fix). The campaign of Colorado’s Michael Bennet has been symbolic of the Democrats’ resolve to hold onto power in the higher chamber, and as of this morning, The Denver Post is giving them reason to celebrate, calling the win for Bennet.
The former head of Denver Public Schools held an early lead last night, but he and his Republican challenger, Ken Buck, remained within a few thousand votes of each other into the early morning hours, points out The Associated Press. Thousands of provisional and write-in ballots were still being tallied this morning, and if the overall count ends up within one-half of a percent, it could spur a possible recount, although that seems less likely now.
Just before 2 a.m., Bennet’s campaign expressed confidence that the election would go the Democrats’ way, writes The Colorado Independent. Meanwhile, the Post notes that Colorado Republican Party chairman Dick Wadhams predicted to a crowd of about 200 GOP loyalists waiting into the night for results that “we will have a new U.S. Senator: Ken Buck.” As of now, that does not appear to be the case. Both parties had anticipated a long election night and had lawyers at the ready to ensure the counts were accurate.