Republican Deb Fischer has defeated former Democratic Senator and Governor Bob Kerrey in the Nebraska Senate race, according to projections from ABC News and CBS News. With 42 percent of precincts reporting, Fischer has earned 55.8 percent of the vote, compared to Kerrey's 44.2 percent.
Fischer is a Nebraska state senator who was nominated over two better-known and better-financed candidates in the state's GOP primary. Fischer's campaign platform included a pledge never to raise taxes and a Constitutional balanced-budget amendment. Kerrey was attempting a return to politics after a decade as president of New York's New School University. The candidates were vying for the seat of retiring Sen. Ben Nelson (D), the only Democrat in Nebraska's five-person congressional delegation.
Here, early reactions to Fischer's victory:
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Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin remains bearish on the GOP's chances:
The Daily KOS gets philosophical:
Smart Girl Politics co-founder Teri Christoph thinks Fischer's victory is the beginning of a trend: