Democratic U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen and Republican challenger Sam Brown were literally tied after the first election results were announced Tuesday night, and by then the Nevada race was no longer relevant for control of the Senate, which Republicans previously held. had forced elections from the Democrats. evening.

With an estimated 74% of the votes counted, Rosen led Brown by just 180 votes out of more than 960,000, and the two both had 47.8% of the vote.

“We are not giving up now. We are going to win this race,” Rosen told supporters at a viewing party at the Aria Resort on the Las Vegas Strip.

“We know that there are still ballots outstanding that have not yet been counted or even received because they are in the mail or in the mailbox,” Rosen said. “There are also thousands of ballots that need to be cured starting tomorrow.”

“We will win when all the votes are counted,” Rosen added.

Brown, a West Point graduate and Army captain who was severely burned by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan, was found to be as much as 10 points behind Rosen in some pre-election polls, although in the final days of the campaign he spoke expressed confidence that the gap was closing.

“Tonight you delivered,” Brown told supporters Tuesday night at an election watch party at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas.

“We will continue to work in the coming days. Check to see if your ballot has been counted. There are thousands of ballots that were legally cast that need to be cured in the coming days.”

“Let’s continue our work so I can go to the United States Senate to represent you,” Brown said.

Roses, who increased $46.5 million in the third quarter, Brown hawked in television ads for his inconsistent record on reproductive freedom. Before Brown moved to Nevada in 2018 managed the congressional campaign in Texas of a candidate who without exception opposed abortion on grounds of rape, incest and the health of the mother. As a legislative candidate in that state, Brown said he would support a ban on abortion without exceptions after 20 weeks.

Brown increased $20 million through the third quarter. He also got a last-minute $6 million boost from late October the Senate Leadership Fund, a Republican super PAC, NBC reported.

Rosen, who billed himself as the most bipartisan member of Congress, led Brown in the polls throughout the race. Rosen, a former synagogue president in Henderson, served one term in the House of Representatives before her election to the Senate in 2018.

This is Brown’s second race for the U.S. Senate. In 2022, he lost the Republican primary to former Attorney General Adam Laxalt, who was defeated by incumbent Senator Catherine Cortez Masto.

Brown, who was endorsed by former President. Donald Trump refused to express support for Trump’s plan to deport millions of undocumented immigrants and voiced support for an easier path to citizenship. His campaign focused on the economy, cutting the federal budget and lowering prices for Nevadans.

The Nevada race was one of a few nationwide competitions expected to determine which party would control the Senate. But the Senate map heavily favored Republicans throughout the cycle, with Democratic incumbents defending seats in several Trump states, including a seat in West Virginia that was ceded by Democrat Joe Manchin and won on Tuesday by Republican Gov. Jim Justice. The Democratic loss of that seat was a foregone conclusion.

Also Tuesday, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio was defeated by Republican Bernie Moreno, helping Republicans secure at least a tie in the Senate as they awaited results in Montana, where incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Tester defeated Republican challenger Tim Sheehy followed. Democratic incumbents also faced tough challenges in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

When incumbent Republican Senator Deb Fischler of Nebraska was declared the winner over independent candidate Dan Osborne, Republican control of the Senate was sealed.

This story has been updated with comments from Rosen and Brown.