Democrat Wins U.S. House Race in Florida

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 11:55 p.m. ET

BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) -- A Democratic state senator on Tuesday handily won the first U.S. House race since Congress passed a massive health care overhaul, beating a decidedly underdog Republican who tried to use the backlash against the measure to pull an upset.

With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Florida state Sen. Ted Deutch had 62 percent of the vote compared to 35 percent for Republican Ed Lynch. No-party candidate Jim McCormick trailed far behind with just 3 percent. The Associated Press called the race just about two hours after the polls closed.

Deutch, an attorney, and Lynch, a contractor, both 44, were vying to replace retiring Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler.

''I have never before felt the way that I feel at this moment,'' Deutch said to cheering supporters.

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