Kara Eastman declared victory in the Democratic race for Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District just before midnight Tuesday, and put an optimistic foot forward into the race ahead of her.
The latest update in the polls boosted Eastman more than 1,100 votes above Brad Ashford in a race that had been as close as 14 votes apart just about an hour after the polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
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As the crowd chanted "Washington! Washington!" Eastman took the podium once again Tuesday night to declare her victory against Brad Ashford, who lost the 2nd District seat to Bacon in 2016.
"I am very humbled and honored to accept the Democratic nomination tonight," Eastman told her supporters, before talking about how her mother inspired her to run.
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"Here's the thing — when I win in November," Eastman said as cheering erupted once more, "I will be the first ever Democratic woman elected from this district in Nebraska," she said. "And I'll be ready to represent the values that we're just sorely lacking in government today."
Thanking her campaign volunteers and supporters, Eastman noted: "I promised we would stay positive — and we actually did!"
Shortly after the polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Eastman led Ashford — barely — with just over 50 percent of the vote, but the race has remained tight with Ashford edging up by just 14 votes around 9 p.m. — the last Election Night update that would show him with the lead.
From that point on, all updates kept Eastman ahead with margins ranging from 170 votes to more than a thousand.
