By KWMU/AP
St. Louis, MO – Matt Blunt will be Missouri's next Governor.
Blunt beat Democrat Claire McCaskill by fewer than 84,000 on Tuesday to become the first Republican elected Governor of Missouri since John Ashcroft.
Blunt rode an overwhelming wave of rural support to defeat McCaskill, who had forced open the governor's office by ousting incumbent Bob Holden in the primary.
Unofficial returns show Blunt with a lead of about 3%. Some votes from the Democratic stronghold of St. Louis are still out, which are expected to narrow Blunt's victory margin.
Blunt is the son of third-ranking GOP Congressman Roy Blunt. He's 34 and becomes the state's second-youngest governor.
Blunt's father Roy lost a bid for Governor in the 1992. And Matt Blunt's grandfather, LeRoy, was a state representative who once won an election against Claire McCaskill's mother, Betty Anne.
To hear a report from KWMU's Kevin Lavery & Matt Sepic about Tuesday's election, click here ---> 
| Missouri Governor | |||
| Candidate | Vote Total | Percentage | |
| Claire McCaskill (D) | 1,296,362 | 47.8% | |
| Matt Blunt (R) | 1,380,200 | 50.9% | |
| John Swenson (L) | 24,295 | 0.9% | |
| Robert Wells (C) | 88 | 0.0% | |