OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Republican Rep. Jeff Fortenberry won a ninth term in Congress on Tuesday, overcoming a challenge from a Democratic state lawmaker from Lincoln.

Fortenberry defeated state Sen. Kate Bolz in the 1st Congressional District, which includes Lincoln and a large, conservative swath of eastern Nebraska. The race was especially competitive, and Fortenberry attacked Bolz in a series of television ads.

“It has been a tough one, but we also ran a good and spirited and strong campaign," he said.

Bolz also raised enough money to run television ads throughout the district, pointing to her upbringing on a family farm and her work in the Legislature. Her legislative district has traditionally been represented by Republicans.

Meanwhile, Republican Sen. Ben Sasse easily defeated two Democratic challengers in the GOP-dominated state.

Sasse beat scandal-plagued Democratic nominee Chris Janicek, who refused to leave the race even after his party disavowed him for sending sexually explicit texts about a campaign staffer.

Nebraska Democratic Party officials spent months trying to force Janicek out of the race, but state law does not allow them to remove his name from the ballot without his permission.

Sasse also bested the Nebraska Democratic Party's preferred candidate, Preston Love Jr., who ran as a write-in candidate.

Love acknowledged in September that he was a long-shot candidate, but added: “I am going to run as if I had all the money that I need and all the love that I need and that we give people an alternative.”

Sasse has campaigned as a reliable, traditional conservative, but he has also clashed publicly with President Donald Trump, drawing criticism from some party activists at home. He warded off a primary challenge from a pro-Trump GOP activist, however, and was expected to win even before the Janicek scandal.

Republican Rep. Don Bacon faces a much tougher challenge from Democrat Kara Eastman in the 2nd Congressional District, encompassing Omaha and its suburbs. Bacon and Eastman are locked in a tight race and have saturated the airwaves with campaign ads attacking one another.

Each candidate has criticized the other's approach to health care policy and pandemic relief, among other issues. Bacon has portrayed Eastman as too liberal for the generally moderate district, while Eastman has sought to tie Bacon to Trump and his inflammatory rhetoric.

Voters were deciding those races and others in an election that saw strong early turnout because of the coronavirus pandemic and aggressive get-out-the-vote campaigns.

In Nebraska's rural, deeply Republican 3rd Congressional District, Rep. Adrian Smith cruised to an easy victory. His Democratic challenger, Mark Elworth Jr., doesn't live in the district and has focused his campaign on legalizing marijuana.

The election will also determine the makeup of Nebraska's officially nonpartisan Legislature, where Republicans enjoy a solid majority. That is not likely to change, although both parties hope to gain seats.

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