Southwest: Arizona

50-state roundup

Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) raced to a substantial lead over conservative think-tank president Len Munsil -- 69 percent to 29 percent -- and never gave it up. She was declared the winner long before precincts closed.

Sen. Jon Kyl (R) had a tougher race with former state Democratic Party chairman Jim Pederson. Although Pederson, a development tycoon, sunk millions into the race, Kyl ended up winning easily by 53 percent. Kyl was bolstered by his strong stand against illegal immigration in a border state. He helped write a proposal that called on Congress to strengthen border security and force illegal immigrants to voluntarily return to their native countries before being allowed to work legally in the United States.

Rep. Rick Renzi (R) struggled with last-minute revelations that the Justice Department had opened a preliminary investigation into his role in land deals involving a former business partner. But the probe appeared to have little impact on Tuesday's voting, as Renzi sailed to election over Ellen Simon.

During the voting, a polling place in Tucson came under scrutiny when observers for Democrats noticed that three men were following Latino voters, one of them carrying a camera and another a gun, a lawyer said. The men left when the party dispatched lawyers to investigate.

New Mexico

The outcome of the heated and closely watched congressional race between Rep. Heather A. Wilson (R) and Patricia Madrid was too close to call yesterday, and officials said it is unlikely to be decided until at least the end of the week. Wilson was clinging to a 1,300-vote lead, but the counting of more than 3,000 provisional and absentee votes will begin today.

Since winning her Albuquerque district eight years ago, Wilson has been targeted by Democrats, but she has managed to eke out close victories in previous elections.

In two other New Mexico races, Democrats had little trouble holding on to their seats. Sen. Jeff Bingaman handily defeated Allen McCullough with 70 percent.

Gov. Bill Richardson also walked easily to reelection, trouncing his challenger by a similar 2 to 1 margin. The landslide could help build momentum for a possible presidential run by Richardson in 2008.

Oklahoma

Gov. Brad Henry (D) routed Rep. Ernest J. Istook Jr., who sits on the powerful Appropriations Committee. It was a resounding win for Henry, who was elected by a single percentage point four years ago. But Istook's seat will remain in GOP hands, as Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin easily defeated David Hunter.

Texas

In the hard-fought race to succeed former House majority leader Tom DeLay (R), former congressman Nick Lampson (D) easily defeated Shelley Sekula Gibbs with 52 percent.

Courts ruled that the state GOP could not put another Republican's name on the ballot after DeLay resigned from Congress, forcing Sekula Gibbs to conduct a difficult write-in campaign. Precinct judges visited polling places Tuesday night to authenticate the spelling of her name on ballots.

As the election approached, the GOP spent heavily to overcome Lampson's considerable war chest, and President Bush visited the suburban Houston district to try to boost Sekula Gibbs's prospects.