Tuesday was just the primary election for most races, but not for Pike County’s Republican District Attorney contest.

And after months of campaigning, Tom Anderson is glad to be the next in line for the role.

“This means everything to me,” said Anderson, who nearly doubled his opponent Gary Bradshaw’s results between Pike and Coffee counties.

Anderson, an assistant district attorney for the office, had a total of 7,572 votes.

Bradshaw, a Coffee County lawyer, trailed with 4,210 votes collectively.

“This is what I’ve been doing for a living,” Anderson said. “I have a passion for it…so I’m grateful for the (voters’) response.”

But, Anderson said even though the campaigning portion of his role is complete, his work is laid out for him.

“Now it’s time for me to live up to my end of the bargain, and that’s to instill confidence in the public, work closely with law enforcement and serve victims,” Anderson said.

Anderson led in both Pike and Coffee County polls individually, with 5,046 votes in Pike County, compared to Bradshaw’s 3,253.

Bradshaw could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.

Anderson has served as assistant district attorney for the last six years.

He will replace long-time DA Gary McAliley, who is set to retire at the end of his term. Though Anderson has sealed the seat, he will not officially take office until January.

In the meantime, he said he looks forward to focusing solely on prosecution, rather than campaigning.