Newark Mayor Cory Booker defeated Republican Steve Lonegan on Wednesday to fill out the remainder of late Sen. Frank Lautenberg’s term.
With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Booker led Lonegan by 54.6 percent to 44.3 percent. He becomes the second African American senator currently serving, next to Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.).
Booker said in his victory speech that he’s going to Washington “to take back that sense of pride” for the American people.
“Not to play shallow politics that’s used to attack and divide but to engage in the kind of hard, humble service that reaches out to others,” he said.
Lonegan, a 12-year mayor of Bogota, N.J., wished Booker “the best inserting the people of New Jersey with his work in Washington, D.C.”
“While we fell short, I am proud that with your help, we never shied away from the issues, never capitulated our principles of standing for your individual liberty or fighting for limited government,” he said on a message to supporters.
“I will never stop fighting for the things I believe in, and I know that you will not either.”
Lonegan also said that he would not run for the seat again in 2014.
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