Frank Kratovil won Wayne Gilchrest's old seat in a very close race.
Democrat Frank M. Kratovil Jr. celebrated victory in the 1st Congressional District a week after Election Day yesterday, closing a rancorous campaign that has colored Maryland a deeper shade of blue.
The end came when Republican Baltimore County state Sen. Andy Harris called to concede in a district that was drawn to favor Republicans but went Democratic in a national wave that broke against the GOP last week.
In Maryland's most competitive race this year, Kratovil, the state's attorney for Queen Anne's County, leads Harris by 2,154 votes of the nearly 353,000 counted. About 8,000 ballots are still to be tallied.
The victory in a district that has been represented since 1991 by Republican Wayne T. Gilchrest gives Democrats seven of the state's eight House seats - for the time being, at least.
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