NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. David Vitter survived a barrage of attacks stemming from his involvement with a prostitution ring and handily defeated Democratic challenger Charlie Melancon for a second term in the Senate.
With 6 percent of precincts reporting, the 49-year-old Vitter had more than 61 percent of the vote over Melancon on Tuesday.
Democrats had claimed Vitter was hostile to women voters because of his link to a Washington, D.C. call-girl ring and because Vitter kept an aide on his staff for more than two years after the aide was accused of beating a girlfriend.
Vitter had countered that Melancon, a 63-year-old congressman from Napoleonville, La., who did not seek re-election, was too closely aligned with the policies of President Barack Obama.
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