Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves won Mississippi’s 2019 gubernatorial race Tuesday evening in a close race against Democratic state Attorney General Jim Hood.

The results of the race were announced just before midnight, with Reeves securing 52.8% of the vote and Hood holding 45.9%, according to The New York Times’ live update of the race.

“Congratulations to [Tate Reeves] on winning Governor of the Great State of Mississippi. Our big Rally on Friday night moved the numbers from a tie to a big WIN. Great reaction under pressure Tate!” President Donald Trump tweeted after the results were announced.

Congratulations to @tatereeves on winning Governor of the Great State of Mississippi. Our big Rally on Friday night moved the numbers from a tie to a big WIN. Great reaction under pressure Tate!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 6, 2019

Current Republican Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, a social and fiscal conservative who endorsed Reeves, is leaving the state’s governor office after serving two terms since 2012, according to the Times.

“Honored to cast my vote for [Tate Reeves] to be the 65th Governor of the great state of Mississippi along with the other republican candidates running for statewide and local offices. Please go out and do the same,” Bryant tweeted earlier Tuesday.

Honored to cast my vote for @tatereeves to be the 65th Governor of the great state of Mississippi along with the other republican candidates running for statewide and local offices. Please go out and do the same. #VoteRED #TeamTate pic.twitter.com/OR8PZuN41t

— Phil Bryant (@PhilBryantMS) November 5, 2019

“Polls are open until 7 PM. Let’s send the Washington liberals a message. Here in Mississippi we are conservatives and we aren’t tired of winning yet,” Bryant added in a Tuesday evening tweet.

Trump also expressed support for Reeves when he came to Mississippi for a rally Saturday, telling the crowd, “We’re going to send a signal by sending a terrific new Republican governor to Jackson,” according to The Associated Press.

Hood gained popularity as a Democratic candidate among both Republican and Democratic voters in the state — one of the country’s poorest — because of his pro-Second Amendment and anti-abortion views, as well as his promise to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, according to the daily Mississippi newspaper The Clarion-Ledger.

The state has not elected a Democratic governor since 1999 when former Lt. Gov. Ronnie Musgrove won the governor’s title on Nov. 12.

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Image: Reuters.