Arkansas governor: Republican Sarah Huckabee Sanders defeats Chris Jones

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Republican candidate and former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders is projected to win the governor’s race. She replaces term-limited Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson. Sanders will be Arkansas' first female governor.

Sanders was the White House Press Secretary under former President Trump from 2017 to 2019. She is the daughter of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who served from 1996 to 2007 and was the state's lieutenant governor from 1993 to 1996.

She defeats Democrat Chris Jones, who is a nuclear engineer and ordained Baptist minister.

After Sanders voted in Little Rock on Tuesday, she told reporters that she doesn't think she ran a divisive campaign and focused on tax cuts as well as other issues that could unite Arkansas residents.

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Sarah Huckabee Sanders visit "The Story with Martha MacCallum" on September 17, 2019, in New York City. (Photo by Steven Ferdman/Getty Images)  (Steven Ferdman/Getty Images)

Hutchinson has served as the governor of Arkansas since 2015.

During her campaign, Sanders pledged to further income tax cuts in Arkansas.

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Former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders discusses the Democrats' impeachment inquiry on "America's Newsroom" Tuesday October 1, 2019.  (Fox News)

Sanders also had surgery to treat thyroid cancer in September, which was successful. 

"I want to thank the Arkansas doctors and nurses for their world-class care, as well as my family and friends for their love, prayers, and support," Sanders wrote in a statement following the surgery.

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In this June 14, 2018 file photo, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders smiles as she wishes President Donald Trump a happy birthday, during the daily briefing, in the Briefing Room of the White House in Washington.  (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

She beat Francis "Doc" Washburn in the Republican primary for Arkansas governor in May after announcing her run for governor in January 2021.

Fox News' Max Thornberry, Kyle Morris, and the Associated Press contributed to this report.