Both 1st Congressional District candidates were criticized for running lackluster campaigns. Thompson, a Logan City councilman, struggled to raise enough money to pose a serious threat. And Bishop, comfortably positioned as the Republican incumbent in notoriously Republican territory, broke stride late in the game.

Commenting on an early Brigham Young University exit poll showing him with 72 percent of the vote, a larger margin of victory than his 2002 race, Bishop said, "It tells me that this is a Republican state and I still feel comfortable sharing the same Republican values."

Emphasizing his seat on important House committees, Bishop campaigned as the "right man at the right place at the right time." He promised to build on the admittedly modest successes of his first term, including saving Hill Air Force Base from impending rounds of military closures by expanding its mission.

He also said he will fight for more school funding by pressing the federal government to reimburse the state for taxes lost on federally-owned land.

Thompson, a small-business owner, ran a bare bones but feisty campaign on $65,000, fueled in part by a personal loan. Bishop spent $295,000.

In debates, Thompson slammed Bishop for catering to corporate and GOP interests by supporting a plan to resume nuclear testing in Nevada and for trying to pave the way for Tooele-based Envirocare of Utah to accept hotter radioactive waste than it now accepts.

But on Tuesday, Thompson's rhetoric had softened. "This is our process and the voters choose who they think will do the best job. Some of us will lose and some of us will win," said the 46-year-old who spent most of the evening at a council meeting.

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Tribune reporter Robert Gehrke contributed to this report.