McSally defeats Heinz in southern Arizona’s District 2

Freshman Republican U.S. Rep. Martha McSally held off her Democratic challenger, Matt Heinz, in Tuesday’s race for Southern Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District.

With almost 198,000 early ballots counted, McSally garnered 53.5 percent of the vote, compared to 46.5 percent for Heinz. The Associated Press called the race for McSally shortly before 10 p.m.

McSally, a retired Air Force colonel, very narrowly beat Democrat Ron Barber in 2014 after a lengthy recount process. She also ran for Congress in a special election to replace former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in 2012 and in the 2012 general election, but lost both times.

Heinz, a doctor and former state legislator from Tucson, edged out former state lawmaker Victoria Steele in the Democratic primary with 53 percent of the vote.

But McSally proved herself a prolific fundraiser, bringing in more than $7 million during the 2016 election cycle in her bid to keep her hard-won seat. Heinz, on the other hand, raised $1.4 million.

National groups like the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee didn’t spend on the CD2 race, leaving Heinz at a sizable monetary disadvantage. Additionally, the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC dedicated to protecting the U.S. House’s Republican majority, slammed Heinz for his support of Obamacare.

Pundits also put CD2 as a safely Republican district throughout the election, despite its demographics. But early ballot returns showed Democrats performing strongly, causing some speculation the district could flip this year.

In her first term, McSally has focused on protecting the A-10 jets housed at Tucson’s Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, among other issues.

The district tilts ever so slightly to favor Republicans, but the voter registration is a near-split among Democrats, the GOP and independents, with 32.9, 33.5 and 33.5 percent of the electorate, respectively.