ATLANTA, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Conservative four-term Republican congressman Saxby Chambliss, who had strong White House backing, apparently defeated U.S. Sen. Max Cleland, the Democratic incumbent, in Georgia on Tuesday.
With more than 80 percent of the state's precincts reporting, Chambliss had a 53 to 45 percent lead over Cleland, who was re-elected six years ago by a margin of only about 30,000 votes.
In his campaign, Chambliss criticized Cleland, a triple amputee Vietnam War veteran, for not supporting President Bush's proposal for a Department of Homeland Security.
"Nobody gave us much of a chance to win this race," Chambliss told supporters in Atlanta. "We know that if you put people ahead of politics, good things can happen."
Chambliss was the beneficiary of five campaign visits by President Bush, including a last-minute weekend trip that urged Republicans to go to the polls.
"If you want to vote for an ally of the president, that ally is Saxby Chambliss," Bush told a crowd in Marietta, Ga., on Saturday.
An estimated $25 million was raised by the two candidates.
