Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss.
Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., won a close runoff election against tea-party backed challenger Chris McDaniel, according to unofficial results reported by the Associated Press, which called the race at 11:03 tonight.

With 99.8 percent of the Mississippi precincts reporting, there was a vote difference of 6,599 votes in Cochran’s favor, with the incumbent winning 50.9 percent of the votes to McDaniel’s 49.1 percent, according to the unofficial tally.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce was among the first to congratulate Cochran, although McDaniel had not yet conceded.

“The U.S. Chamber was actively involved in the Mississippi Senate primary and runoff because Thad Cochran is a proven leader who gets results for Mississippi,” the group said in a statement.

“He has an impeccable record, not only of supporting policies that boost economic growth and job creation, but of leadership to get things done. We were proud to stand with Sen. Cochran in his race and congratulate him on his victory.”

Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., also issued congratulations, saying Cochran “has dedicated his life to serving the people of Mississippi and he will continue to fight diligently for them in the Senate.”

Farm leaders in Mississippi had formed “Farmers for Thad” to support Cochran’s re-election bid.

The coalition, led by farmers Danny Murphy and Jeremy Jack, called attention to the importance of agriculture to Mississippi and the significant victories won for the state by Cochran as former chairman and current ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.

In the last days of the race, Cochran, encouraged black voters to turn out and vote Republican. Cochran has been a reliable supporter of food stamps and other programs that benefit low-income people.