Rep. Mia Love loses to Democrat in Utah

Final vote counts Tuesday showed that Democrat Ben McAdams did not jump the gun when he declared victory a day earlier over two-term Republican Rep. Mia Love.

He won by 694 votes, or a margin of 50.129 percent to 49.871. That margin of 0.258 was just barely outside the 0.25 percent that would have allowed Love to request a recount.

Love, the only black female Republican in the House, was expected to issue a statement later about the race. Her staff said she is out of state for Thanksgiving, and would not give any interviews until after the holiday.

McAdams’ victory means House Democrats will hold at least 234 seats as the majority party in January when the new Congress is sworn in.

Mia Love leading in polls in her re-election campaign

A Utah Debate Commission poll shows Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Mia Love with a surprising 19-point advantage in her re-match with Democratic challenger Doug Owens. Owens lost to Love by 5 percentage points two years ago, and since then, national Democrats and political handicappers have listed the race as one of the top targets for a Democratic pickup in November.

The most recent poll of the race, conducted for UtahPolicy.com last month, showed Love with a 13-point advantage. Love had previously released internal polling that showed similar results.

If the race has swung that heavily to Love's advantage, it is likely that national Democrats could abandon Owens' campaign in favor of more competitive targets.

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Mia Love: First black republican female elected to Congress

Republican Mia Love defeated her Democratic opponent Doug Owens in the race to represent Utah's 4th congressional district, the AP reported early Wednesday.

With that win, Love becomes the first black woman Republican elected to Congress.