RALEIGH, N.C. -- North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr vanquished Democratic challenger Elaine Marshall on Tuesday, retaining his seat in Congress with a renewed promise to rein in government spending and debt.
With 20 percent of precincts reporting Tuesday night, Burr held 55 percent of the vote compared with 43 percent for Marshall. Libertarian candidate Michael Beitler had 2 percent.
Burr, who has served one term in the Senate after a decade in the House, had portrayed himself as an agent of change after two years of Democratic control of federal government.
His message particularly focused on fiscal discipline, acknowledging past Republican mistakes of intense government spending but blaming Democrats for escalating the excess with President Obama in charge.
Marshall, a veteran politician in Raleigh, had cast herself as an outsider in the race. She blamed Burr for contributing to problems with Washington politics and questioned his ties to interest groups. Marshall vowed to be a champion for average North Carolina residents, touting her work fighting Wall Street firms during her tenure as secretary of state.
Unlike two years ago, when Democratic state Sen. Kay Hagan emerged from obscurity in North Carolina to oust widely known Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole, the Democratic establishment in Washington did little to aid Marshall, instead investing in other races around the country where incumbents were at risk of losing their seats.
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