After what was at times a contemptuous campaign, state Sen. Tim Sheldon has been re-elected from the 35th District.

Sheldon led Irene Bowling in Kitsap, Thurston and Pierce counties. In Kitsap County, he received 61.5 percent of the votes to Bowling’s 36.9 percent. The 35th District encompasses parts of all three counties.

Sheldon, who was reached at home Tuesday evening, said he thought his victory was about “representing everyone, not just the party loyal.”

“I’m not a party clone,” he said. “I’ve run nine times as a Democrat for the legislature and this will be my 10th victory. This race was about more than party loyalty. It was about who will represent you.”The campaign garnered media attention just last week when campaign mailers began showing up from various groups citing Sheldon’s positions on abortion, health care and immigrant tuition. He held a news conference where the head of the Republican party in Washington State said the fliers were an attempt to suppress the Republican vote.

Sheldon, who is a conservative Democrat, garnered the support of Republicans in the race which included the top two finishers in the August primary — both Democrats.

Sheldon has a long history in politics. He was first elected to the State Senate in 1997, and he now serves as Senate President Pro Tempore. He was a State Representative for the 35th District from 1991 to 1997, and he has been a Mason County Commissioner since 2004.

During the campaign, he said he would continue to vote the views of his constituents, “never sacrificing the needs of his constituents to support a party-line vote.”

He also told voters that he was present and voted on every bill before the House in the 2013-2014 sessions. He campaigned as a legislator “who works with members of all political parties to find common-sense solutions without new taxes.”

His opponent, Democrat Irene Bowling, said she was disappointed by early election returns.”We’re hanging in there,” she said. “A lot of people voted today, so I’m not ready to give up. We’ll just have to see how this pans out.”

Bowling attributed Sheldon’s strong showing to his corporate backers and “big oil money” who contributed to his campaign.

“They really blasted me with that,” she said. “He outspent me two to one.”

And she said much of his support actually came from the Republican party strongholds.

During the campaign, she said she wanted to take her experience running a small business and as an educator to Olympia “to get things done.”

She said she would fight for excellence in education, a healthy business climate with family-wage jobs and more accountability for taxpayers.

She began teaching piano at age 13 and has owned and operated a music school in Kitsap County for 34 years.

While this was her first state-level campaign, she was among those who were considered by the Democratic party to fill the District 3 Kitsap County Commission seat when Josh Brown resigned. She has served as a precinct committee officer and state committeewoman for the Democrats.