ELECTION UPDATE | McConnell wins Ky. as GOP bids for Senate majority

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell won a hard-fought sixth term today, putting him a step closer to his lifelong dream of becoming majority leader and getting the GOP off to a good start in its goal of taking control of the Senate.

Democrats once had high hopes for challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes, Kentucky's young secretary of state. But the hill was too steep in a state President Barack Obama lost by 23 percentage points in 2012.

McConnell, like Republicans in every competitive state, relentlessly tied his opponent to the president, whose approval ratings have sagged. McConnell's allies taunted Grimes for refusing to say whether she had voted for Obama.

If Republicans gain six new seats, McConnell, 72, is positioned to become the Senate's majority leader. That would give him substantial powers to decide what legislation reaches the floor for votes, and when.