Rep. Emanuel Cleaver wins 11th term representing Kansas City in Congress

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver easily captured reelection in Kansas City's 5th Congressional District Tuesday, securing an eleventh term in the House.

The Associated Press called the race at 9:56 p.m. Cleaver won 60.3% of the vote compared to 36.5% for Republican Sean Smith, 2% for Libertarian William Truman Wayne and 1% for Green Party candidate Michael Day, according to the AP.

Cleaver, 80, will enter his 20th year in the House, where he serves on the House Financial Services Committee and is the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance.

That committee could face a larger role over the next two years, as both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump campaigned on lowering housing costs for Americans — one source of the higher prices plaguing many in the Kansas City area.

Cleaver was first elected to the House in 2004, after serving as the first Black mayor of Kansas City between 1991 and 1999. Over his time in Congress he's been a reliable vote for the Democratic Party and at one point served as the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus.