Republican defeats Blue Dog Chandler in Kentucky

Republican challenger Andy Barr toppled Rep. Ben Chandler (D) in Kentucky's 6th district, according to election projections from multiple news sources, defeating one of the few remaining Blue Dog Democrats in the South.

Chandler has been a top Republican target from the start, drawing more than $1 million in attacks from the National Republican Congressional Committee alone.

It’s by far Kentucky’s most expensive House race. The two candidates have spent nearly $4 million attacking each other.

Chandler has both served and run as a moderate. He bucked his party by voting against the federal bailout and Obama’s healthcare reform, and he received the endorsement of conservative groups like the National Rifle Association.

But President Obama is wildly unpopular in Kentucky, and Mitt Romney is projected to win the state. That was Chandler’s biggest liability, and Barr worked to enhance it, tying the incumbent to Obama at every opportunity.

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