Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison will become Minnesota’s next attorney general after defeating Republican opponent Doug Wardlow.
Local media outlets called the race for Ellison Tuesday when he had about 49 percent of the vote and 94 percent of precincts reporting.
Ellison is the first Muslim to win statewide office, a feat coinciding with Michigan’s Rashida Tlaib and Minnesota’s lhan Omar, both Democrats, becoming the first two Muslim women elected to Congress.
Ellison’s victory, however, comes amid allegations that he abused his former longtime girlfriend. A probe by Minnesota’s state Democratic Party, called the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, reported last month that it had found no evidence to substantiate Karen Monahan’s claims, which Ellison has vehemently denied.
Ellison, who simultaneously serves as the Democratic National Committee’s deputy chairman, announced in June that he would step down from his safe House seat to campaign to become Minnesota’s top lawyer.
Wardlow, Ellison’s challenger, also faced a claim of misconduct from his past. A former high school classmate accused the Republican of bullying him for being gay. Wardlow has denied the allegation.
