CHICAGO — Republican Robert Dold edged Democrat Dan Seals in the 10th Congressional race to replace U.S Senator-elect Mark Kirk, the Associated Press reported.

Dold is president of Rose Pest Solutions, Northfield, Ill.

Appearing shortly before midnight, Dold a crowd of supporters, "This is a great night for us, but a bad night for the big spenders in Washington, D.C. By letting your voices be heard, I'll be able to represent you and move our country forward."

The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) has been very supportive of the Dold campaign, holding fundraisers and asking its members to back the campaign. Gene Harrington, manager of government affairs, NPMA, said he was not surprised by the outcome. “When Bob first told us that he was running for Congress we were very confident that he would win and wanted to do everything we could to help, including measuring for the drapes in his Congressional office. Bob is viewed by the Congressional leadership as a budding leader and has already been tagged as a potential superstar of this extraordinarily large freshman class. “

Harrington added that Dold’s election is very rewarding not only for NPMA but for the hundreds of pest management professionals across the country that contributed or otherwise supported his campaign.  

“The fact he will be serving in Congress gives PMPs and other industries dominated by small businesses the comfort of knowing that at least one member of Congress understands and can relate to the challenges faced by small business and know full well what a difficult climate it is today,” he said.

Dold previously worked in the White House under President George H.W. Bush and served as an investigative counsel for the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee before coming back to the suburbs to work at the family business (see “Bob Dold Running for Congress,” PCT magazine, October 2009).