OLIVE HILL — Democrats picked up a seat in the Republican-controlled state Senate Tuesday night as Democratic state Rep. Robin Webb of Grayson narrowly defeated Republican Jack Ditty in a bitter special election for the 18th state Senate District.

Webb won a closer than expected race, outpolling Ditty, a Bellefonte dermatologist, 8,684 to 8,402 — a margin of only 282 votes.. Independent Guy E. Gibbons Jr. finished a distant third with 953 votes.

Ditty won Bracken, Greenup, Lewis and Mason counties but Webb overtook him in her home county of Carter — 3,105 to1,955 — and won Robertson 168-142.

Ditty won his home county of Greenup but Webb stayed within striking distance — 2,737 to Ditty’s 3,407. Turnout was a bit higher than expected at 23 percent of the district’s 76,393 registered voters.

“The voters who know me the best turned out for me the most,” Webb said to about 100 enthusiastic supporters at Carter Caves State Resort Park.

It was an expensive, often bitter race. Both candidates are expected to have spent more than $250,000 — Webb said 10 days before the election it might take $300,000 — and each side and their state parties ran bitter personal attack ads.

Webb said she was “validated and vindicated” by the win and said the race was hard on her family, especially her children.

“They’ve had to endure, withstand things no child should have to hear,” Webb said. “They threw everything at me and more but I’m still standing with your support.” Then she added a dig to Republicans like U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and U.S. Rep. Geoff Davis, “the boys,” she called them.

“You picked the wrong girl to beat up on,” she said as the crowd roared, adding she can “outshoot them and out punch them.”

The race was for the seat vacated by Republican Charlie Borders of Grayson who resigned to accept appointment by Gov. Steve Beshear to the Public Service Commission. Beshear, who during his 2007 campaign for governor promised “to take back the state Senate” from Republicans, called a special election the same day Borders resigned.

Webb’s victory narrows the Republican majority to 20-17-1. Paducah Independent Bob Leeper usually votes with the Republicans.

Webb also voted in the House during a special session to allow video lottery terminals at horse tracks, a Beshear priority. The measure died in Borders’ committee and Webb’s election means at least one more vote for the measure in the upper chamber. Ditty opposed expanded gambling.

Beshear was quick to congratulate Webb.

“I want to congratulate Robin Webb on winning a hard-fought, hard-run campaign,” said Beshear. “The people of the 18th Senate District have spoken with one voice: They want someone who will help create good jobs, ensure quality schools and help provide affordable health care. And I believe they want someone who will work with me in a bi-partisan fashion to move our state forward.”

Both sides pulled out all the stops — Beshear and former Democratic governors campaigned for Webb while McConnell and several state Republican senators campaigned with Ditty. Each had major get-out-the vote efforts. State AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan said labor helped Webb win.

“We think we had a significant impact in Carter and Greenup counties,” Londrigan said.

Erin Willis, a housewife from Grayson, is a Republican, but she voted for Webb.

“My husband is a registered Democrat and he’s a union member at AK Steel (in Ashland), and Robin’s been very supportive of the union and that’s important to me.”

Willis, however, didn’t like the negative tone of the campaign. Democrats claimed Ditty turns away poor patients — the Cabinet for Health and Family Services said Ditty is a Medicaid provider and has received Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements — while Republicans attacked Webb for supporting commutation of a death sentence for a felon who committed a brutal kidnapping and murder while he was a juvenile. Webb said she only wanted to end execution of juveniles in Kentucky, something the courts in fact did a couple of years later.

Willis said both sides were at fault.

“I never liked the ads,” she said. “They just attack each other and I never think very much of that.”

Elizabeth Bailey of Grayson volunteered for Webb’s campaign. She agreed with Willis; both sides engaged in negative advertising.

“A lot of the accusations — on both sides really — it just gets aggravating,” said Bailey. “I don’t like it.”

Webb said she understood. Twice during her victory speech she apologized for the tone of the campaign, saying she’d endured it in past campaigns and saw it coming this time.

RONNIE ELLIS writes for CNHI News Service and is based in Frankfort. Reach him atrellis@cnhi.com.